Sir, Liberal Democrat Bob Johnston and his fellow Oxfordshire councillors (Herald, April 22) are calling for new trains and an upgrading of the rail network.

But that is precisely what they are getting: have they not noticed the proliferation of electrification masts between Reading and Didcot? Or the flyovers and station expansion at Reading, a vast project completed ahead of schedule and within budget and already proving its worth in giving trains a clear run through?

Are they unaware of the spur that has been built at Bicester to enable Chiltern's trains to provide an alternative route from North Oxford to the capital? Or of the recent redoubling of much of the Oxford-Worcester Cotswold line, increasing capacity and reducing delay.

Do these councillors know that their local 'Turbos' – which, incidentally, have plenty of years' life left in them – are to be transferred to the Bristol area and their place taken by modern electric multiple units?

Or that elderly but refurbished and re-engined InterCity 125s are about to be superseded on long-distance routes by brand-new electric and electro-diesel trains?

Labour councillor Nick Hards is well off the mark in his statement that "the Department of Transport on its own cannot do what we want because the railway line (sic) is run by a private operator".

First, Network Rail is no longer a private but a state-owned operator.

Second, although First Great Western and Chiltern are indeed private operators, they are very much under the thumb of the Department for Transport.

Yes, there have been 'hiccups' on First Great Western but it should be borne in mind that running an intensive train service while the infrastructure is effectively being rebuilt is a mind-bogglingly complex task.

The railway is going through a period of expansion exceeding anything I have previously witnessed in all my 72 years to date and I find it worrying that our representatives on the council apparently have so little idea about what is going on around them.

Keith Farr
Sandy Lane, Cholsey