Friends of Walkden Station have gone from strength to strength since they were formed in 2007, and have had some real success with the new Sunday services starting in May – that improvement simply wouldn’t have happened without the hard work that FOWS have put in.

Friends of Patricroft Station are a relatively new group, but they’ve clearly hit the ground running and are already making a big impact. There’s a lot of potential at Patricroft station, particularly with the improvements proposed in the Bridgewater Canal Corridor strategy, and it’s great to see another group of community-minded local people.

All our local station adoption groups do a great job and I will continue to do all that I can to support them.

FOWS have done an absolutely fantastic job and their hard work is now beginning to pay off. The new Sunday service starts in May and this simply would not have happened without the dedication that FOWS volunteers have shown.

They are a fantastic example of a community group and will continue to have my full support. I hope to see you tonight!

I’m doing my bit to liaise between FOWS and the Council officers, and I’m keen to hear from local people if they have any ideas about how to promote the service. Do let me know!

We can’t go on like this – we need change to get the country back on its feet. Change is based on the values of responsibility and aspiration, and David Cameron offers change you can trust because he has proved he can give strong, modern leadership to a united Conservative Party.

There’s also a meeting of the Save Barton Moss campaign group tonight, starting at 7pm at Higher Irlam Social Club, Cutnook Lane, Irlam. Don’t forget that the deadline for submitting responses to the Core Strategy is a week Friday, 15th January.

It has taken a while to install, but I’m sure that now it has actually been in place for a few weeks and is working properly that it will be hugely beneficial both to passengers and to Marion and her excellent team of staff who work at the station.

It’s been a really encouraging few months for users of the station, with the new tannoy, roof repairs, and the successful campaign to reintroduce Sunday services from May. Most of this is down to the hard work of the Friends of Walkden Station who I cannot praise highly enough.

Nonetheless there is still much to do to bring our local stations – including Walkden – up to scratch. Disabled access remains a big problem at Walkden, Eccles and Irlam stations, and peak services remain overcrowded with too few carriages.

I am a regular rail user myself, and commuters at all four stations that serve the Worsley & Eccles South constituency (Walkden, Eccles, Patricroft and Irlam) can rest assured that I understand the issues that blight our local rail services and will do everything I can on their behalf to lobby for the improvements required.

(Yes, before anyone else comments, I know Eccles station is just outside the constituency…)

After a gap of a full generation, Sunday services will return to Walkden station from May next year, thanks to the GMITA decision today to support a restored service.

This is great news for local people who want to use public transport, not just in Walkden but also the surrounding area – Worsley, Boothstown, Ellenbrook, Little Hulton and also Astley and Tyldesley all rely on Walkden as their local station. The new services will also serve Swinton and Moorside stations within the Salford area, and Atherton, Hag Fold and Daisy Hill (Westhoughton) stations in Bolton and Wigan.

The service has initially been agreed for a one-year trial, so local people need to use the service from May – or it will vanish as quickly as it appeared!

I’d like to thank the Friends of Walkden Station who have campaigned tirelessly for the reintroduction of Sunday services. They are a fantastic group, a pleasure to work with, and this decision today would certainly never have happened without their persistence.

I sincerely hope that they approve this proposal which will be a huge boost for local residents in Walkden, Swinton and the surrounding areas. I firmly believe that there will be a demand for this service and I hope that, at the very least, GMITA take a “suck it and see” approach and give the go-ahead for a limited period.

Fingers crossed…