AT a time when our roads are becoming increasingly congested, railways in East Lancashire have been put under threat.

In most cases these proposed closures are in fact not in rural areas, but districts of relatively high population density. The lack of business acumen for attracting passengers in this area almost beggars description.

Towns such as Skipton and Ilkley (no bigger than Clitheroe) enjoy frequent modern electric services to Leeds/Bradford. Preston (slightly smaller than Blackburn) runs three times per hour to Manchester. Ormskirk runs a 15-minute service to Liverpool. None of the aforementioned services are under threat because they are well used!

By the same token if Pendle, Burnley and Blackburn had been offered a reliable 20-minute service, I have no reason to believe they would not be equally as successful as the others I have referred to.

TOM CULBERT, Knowsley Road West, Clayton-le-Dale, Blackburn.