The BBC's Simon Montague: Complaints are on the increase

More commuters have complained since privatisation

Mr Prescott and Transport Minister John Reid are planning to tell them that the public are tired of hearing companies blaming each other for poor standards.

He and Dr Reid are asking the heads of train companies, Railtrack, which operates lines, signalling and stations, and the Office of Passenger Rail Franchising to the meeting.

The new Strategic Rail Authority set up in shadow form for next spring is designed to organise rail servives in the medium and long term. But ministers will present plans aimed at raising service levels immediately.

Rail managers will be told to consider resutructing of performance figures to make them clearer to passengers.

Plan of action

On Wednesday, Dr Reid said train operators would be asked to suggest their own proposals for improvement so a "concrete action plan" can be brought forward within two to three months.

The BBC's Dominic Arkwright: "Many feel the momentum of integrated transport has been lost"

Dr Reid told Channel Four's Powerhouse programme: "Over half the companies are not doing as well as they should be and performance is deteriorating."

He said: "John Prescott and I are very well aware that we did not create this chaos but people expect us to take action now and we accept that responsibility."

Train operators 'need final warning'

The pressure group Save Our Railways said Mr Prescott had to give more details of how he planned to sort out the rail network.

"Mr Prescott should reflect the public mood and put the train companies on a final warning," said campaign director Jonathan Bray.

"The era of profiteering, confusion and poor service must be brought to an end, a new era where quality counts must begin."

Mr Prescott issued the invitation to rail chiefs after defending the transport measures contained in the Queen's Speech after his white paper was left out of it.

The absence of a transport white paper was seized on as one of the notable omissions as the government unveiled its plans for the coming year.

John Prescott wants a plan of action from rail chiefs

To the visible irritation of Mr Prescott in the Commons, Conservative leader William Hague asked: "What's the point of having an integrated transport policy when you can't even integrate it into the government's programme?"

But, speaking on the BBC, Mr Prescott insisted the plans which were in the Queen's speech represented a major step towards an integrated transport policy.

He denied that other powerful ministers who were scared of appearing anti-car had sidelined him.

John Prescott on Radio 4's Today programme: "The reality is I've got a quarter of the programme"

He said: "Out of 22 Queen's speech bills, I've got five - the reality is I've got a quarter of the programme.

"We're only at the second year of a five-year programme so give us a chance," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Rail authority on track

He said promised congestion charges were in the London Bill and would be extended around Britain.

Road traffic is predicted to soar

"There's no doubt we will be using charges," he said. "Nobody's ever achieved before and I've achieved it in 18 months."

Mr Prescott admitted he had not received any prospect of legislation on the running of buses.

But he insisted his plans to integrate the UK's rail network, currently run by separate private companies, were on track.

"The Queen's speech contains a strategic rail authority but I've said I don't want to wait and I'm getting on with the job by converting British Rail."

But campaigners are sceptical about whether dramatic changes will come.

Steven Joseph of Transport 2000 said: "We won't get the better regulation needed to make the trains run on time."

And Charles Secrett of Friends of the Earth insisted a single transport bill would be better than piecemeal changes.