I am writing about the Minehead Rail Link Group’s public meeting in Minehead (Free Press November 2).

I asked where the money was coming from for a Minehead to Taunton rail service as Somerset County Council has no funds available and the Government is unlikely to provide any money and in any case would prefer to spend money on roads rather than railways.

Many of Minehead’s residents are over 65 and have bus passes so would not pay to travel to Taunton on the train.

How does the group propose to pay for the staffing of five signal boxes if it is to run trains early in the morning and in the evenings when the volunteer signallers will not be on duty?

To ensure the West Somerset Railway can continue to run trains in 20 years’ time, a mile of track needs to be relaid each year. This happens in the closed season when trains are not running.

If a 365 day a year service of commuter trains was to be run, this would entail paying contractors to re-lay a mile of track in overnight sessions costing up to half a million pounds a year for 20 years, a total of £10 million.

Has the Minehead Rail Link Group got a magic money tree?

A Minehead to Taunton commuter service is just pie in the sky now and in the future.

Alan Stiven, Williton.