Living with a toddler means that I spend more than my fair share of time playing with trains; picking up ever greater numbers of passengers (and dinosaurs), finding new routes for them to travel and using Lego bricks to make shiny new train stations for them to pull into.

It turns out that all of this is great preparation for noticing the increase in commentary about Watford Junction by our MP and the council; both having been making pronouncements about trains recently – the latter through development plans; and the former through his petition around the redevelopment of the mainline station.

We all know that Watford Junction needs redeveloping. The reorganisation of the cab rank a couple of years ago was an unmitigated disaster by the council, making it harder for people to journey on. Certainly, train travel in Watford can be a painful experience. Let’s not forget that the popular Metropolitan line Tube station is closing, which will inconvenience thousands of commuters as well.

Southern Trains demonstrated its disdain for Watford commuters recently, when it cancelled trains from Milton Keynes through to Clapham, another service on which many people rely.

A majority of the public are in favour of renationalising the railways, meaning the train operating companies. The track is already owned by the ‘not for profit’ Network Rail, after the dreadful Railtrack and the Hatfield crash. The public’s view is that trains (and other utilities like water) should be brought back into public ownership to give value to the taxpayer rather than shareholders.

Watford Junction does need an overhaul. But you know that old saying about no matter how much you polish something; it’s still what it is beneath the shine? Unless what goes through the station gets sorted out too, a nice forecourt won’t really make things better.

  • Matt Turmaine is a Labour councillor for Holywell