Follow the East Coast example and make profit for the taxpayer.

Kenneth Mudd, Guisborough

Bring back BR along with Network Southeast, Intercity and Regional Railways, and end franchising for the good of the people, not profit.

Jesse Mensah, London

British Rail ran a cohesive service, with trains that actually connected with each other. This is no longer the case with private operators.

Denis Keenan, Ossett

How much improvement in services could have been funded by the wasteful franchise process?

Ray Butler, Manchester

A worthy cause.

Jillian Currey, York

The fragmented privatised railway is still paid for by the taxpayer, yet is so inefficient that it costs three times what BR cost. It’s time to give us back our national railway.

Philip Davis, Birmingham

Hoping for a fairly priced and state-owned railway system.

Elaine Tavner, Holford

Unified track, trains and maintenance, with simple clearly-defined profit centres – InterCity / HS/ Regional / Freight / Scotland – as immediately pre-privatisation.

Barrie Fairbairn, Leicester

A national rail transport network should be owned by the people and not run for private profit.

Peter Crane, Northampton

Connex was a rubbish company which couldn’t run the railway, but no private company can do it!

Jonathan, Kent

Travel by train used to be my favourite way to travel. I can’t afford the luxury any more. It’s actually cheaper to fly. Bring back our trains for public transport again.

Norma Tyler, Whitley Bay

Infrastructure should not be privately owned, it should be publicly owned and run for best performance and value, not raw profiteering.

Stephen Thomas, Reigate

Why doesn’t the government learn by their mistakes? Outsourcing does not always work. It’s all about the shareholders wanting big payouts. It’s time to say no more.

Yvonne Weaver, Dagenham

East Coast Mainline proves it can be done. High quality service run for passengers not shareholders’ profit.

Martin Rawson, Derby

Privatised rail services don’t do the public any favours.

Anne Fallon, London

Bring back British Rail. People and service over profit.

Kerry Hindmarch, Sheffield

They are quite happy to delay passenger trains by late running freight. Once is unfortunate, twice coincidence and fifty times is downright incompetence.

Kevin Wisbey, Bury St Edmunds

British Rail should be run as one organisation for the public, not individual companies whose sole aim is to make a profit for the shareholders.

Vanessa Carr, St Albans

Going on public transport is like a visit to the third world.

Simon Lumley, Hungerford

I want a proper integrated rail network not the dog’s breakfast we have now.

Tom Hill, East Molesey

An infrastructure that serves the whole country should never be in the hands of private companies. East Coast Rail has proved this.

Alan Taylor, Coalville

This is the most sensible idea I’ve heard in a long while. It’s a natural utility and a public service, for goodness’ sake.

Jason Whiffin, London

I would like to see the railways nationalised again.

Denis Doran, Bury St Edmunds

It is time to bring back what we lost, to the forefront of the railway network.

Samuel Fitzgerald, Caerphilly

This is a no-brainer. The reasons for re-nationalisation far outweigh the crass commercial arguments for private ownership, especially since that is mostly foreign.

David Tyler, Abergavenny

It can’t be any more expensive than it already is.

Ross Wright, Kirriemuir

Privatisation has made the railways much worse.

Ralph Baker, Margate

A railway is a social service and should be not-for-profit, at the lowest possible fares for all. Britain’s railway system is too expensive for many buying on the day.

Dr Adrian Morgan, Ripon

I thoroughly agree. De-nationalisation shouldn’t have happened in the first place and an overhaul is now overdue. The travelling public are getting poor value for money.

Robert Morris, Aberystwyth

It needs to happen.

Mitch Wyatt, Raynes Park