Letter to the Editor: I used to come to Aberystwyth from Cardiff in late 1950s on the train changing at Carmarthen. It took approximately 2½ hours, stopping in Tregaron to fill up with water.

The porter on the train was a Mr Jones and, on my first trip, I asked him to let me know when we get to Aberystwyth as I did not want to miss my stop. His reply was: “My dear, if we go any further we will be in the sea.”T

hen along comes 1965 and car companies wanted to build motorways and the said government approved — and lo and behold all the vital rural trains services we had stopped.

It’s now the 21st century  and rockets going to the Moon and satellites in space — yet we are being told in Aberystwyth that to reconnect the train service to Carmarthen will take another 40 years as published in your recent newspaper (‘No chance’ of reopening railway in the next 40 years, Cambrian News, 12 April)

Why?

Am I right in saying there’s only three miles of track missing. Cardiff and surrounding areas have 20 stations connected at present and the Valleys in south Wales have accessible train services  So Welsh Government, what’s the problem with mid Wales? Don’t we deserve a train line south of Aberystwyth after all?

We are all taxpayers, the same as south Wales.

Carol Bell, Aberystwyth

Editor’s note: All taxpayers are not created equal. Wales ends on the M4 corridor and begins again along the A55. This part of the nation doesn’t exist in Cardiff’s mind.