The inaugural meeting of Walsden Rail Action Group (WRAG) was attended by more than 30 concerned rail users last week.

Helena Cook, WRAG's press officer, has urged rail users to attend a public meeting to discuss the proposed cuts to passenger services.

"Northern Rail intend to reduce services in the morning and evening peak times, to a once hourly service in the direction of Halifax and Bradford, and to also cut some peak services to Manchester."

WRAG members will be travelling to Mytholmroyd for a public meeting at 7.30pm on Monday, September 8, at the Church of the Good Shepherd, at which Steve Butcher, Northern Rail director, will be speaking about the proposed new timetable due to take effect in December.

Ms Cook said WRAG would urge as many of their supporters as possible to attend this meeting to show their opposition to the new timetable.

The changes will take effect this December as a result of the introduction of a faster service from Bradford to Manchester, which will take 59 minutes, shaving off ten minutes from the service offered at present. To achieve this faster service a number of smaller stations, including Walsden, Mytholmroyd and Sowerby Bridge, will lose some of their trains. For example the service from Mytholmroyd eastwards towards Halifax and Bradford will be reduced from two trains to one train per hour with a similar reduction for those arriving at the station.

Lesley Mackay, chairwoman of the sustainable transport group of the Upper Calder Valley Renaissance, said there was a contradiction between the effort and money being spent on regeneration in the upper valley and the undermining of services.

"The reduced train service will mean less future investment in Mytholmroyd Station because there won't be a high enough footfall. Thus, there won't be improvements in parking or pressure to staff the station so that it becomes completely accessible. A downward spiral can be conceived, despite a very successful station partnership having been established.

Ms Mackay said there were a number of concerns about the knock-on effect of these changes, including the lack of transportation links to maintain local employers in the area, such as Sweet and Maxwell at Mytholmroyd, and the jeopardy to sustainable travel.

"The changes are personally difficult for many of the present train users who have made the change from car to train but are not being rewarded for their modal shift.

"It is not clear really why there should be any losers when new services are introduced.