TO anyone who actually lives in East Lancashire the desperate need for better rail links - especially to and from Manchester - doesn't need to be explained.

If you live here you know that existing rolling stock is dirty, draughty and unreliable.

And there can be few areas in the country where commuters still have to put up with delay-prone single track services to such a major regional centre.

So it's not surprising that in a letter to the government backing Blackburn with Darwen Council's transport plans, Max Steinberg, chief executive of regeneration body Elevate, describes our current rail provision as "a disgrace".

He also makes the point that without good rail links the work his organisation is doing will be wasted "because the transport infrastructure won't have improved" and the people and companies Elevate is trying to attract to the area will not want to come.

Mr Steinberg's observations are spot-on but also obvious to anyone with local knowledge.

The worrying thing is that he should need to have to put pen to paper to point them out.

The government has asked to council to "prove the benefit" of spending at least £6million upgrading the Blackburn to Bolton and Manchester rail track.

They shouldn't need to be told. They should know.