Improving rail links in the East

Rail passengers across the Eastern region hope to see improvements in services whichever party wins the general election.

Guy Dangerfield, Eastern regional director for the Rail Passenger Committee, said the big issue for passengers was punctuality.

They also want ticket prices that "they can afford".

He said people want a service "where the level of quality they experience... meets their expectations".

John Balmforth, a member of the Rail Passenger Committee for the Midlands (which covers towns such as Northampton and Milton Keynes), said: "Passengers want to see trains that are on time and they are weary of the continual fare increases."

'Overcrowded trains'

The Labour candidate for the Suffolk Coastal constituency, David Rowe, called for improved transports links in the county.

"It's alright to improve links for freight but we also need better lines to the centre of the country," he said.

Paul West, the Conservative candidate for Ipswich, said: "Monday to Friday trains are running late. People want to see a bit of reliability."

He said there were also concerns about overcrowding on the trains and "that the number of carriages needs to be increased".

Andrew Simpson, the Liberal Democrat candidate for Northampton North, said his party would cut through the confusion of the different rail companies that run trains.

"We would reduce the number of rail franchises. We would also put more investment into the rail network," he said.

Candidates who are standing in the constituencies mentioned above include:

Ipswich
Chris Mole (Labour)
Paul West (Conservative)
Richard Atkins (Lib Dem)
Jervis Kay (English Democrats)
Sally Wainman (Independent)
Alison West (UKIP)

Northampton North
Sally Keeble (Labour)
Damian Collins (Conservative)
Andrew Simpson (Lib Dem)
Andrew Otchie (Christian Peoples Alliance)
Paul Witherington (SOS)
John Howsam (UKIP)

Suffolk Coastal
John Gummer (Conservative)
David Rowe (Labour)
David Young (Lib Dem)
Paul Whitlow (Green)
Richard Curtis (UKIP)