I was amused and annoyed in turn at the article in the Evening Press by Caroline Barrett (January 12,) about complaints levelled at Railtrack because they dare to carry out essential maintenance work at night.

They would possibly be among the first to claim "compo" (in the language of the unspeakable Les Battersby in Coronation Street) if an accident was caused by some breakdown on the railway line!

The people in charge of the railway cannot win, can they?

If they neglect safety procedures such as those presumably being followed now, they lay themselves open to compensation claims brought by Joe Public, always out to make a fast buck, and if they do the vitally necessary work to avoid such accidents, that is wrong too.

The militant groups in our society are fast nurturing a breed of whingers spongers, and wimps.

So far, hopefully, they are in the minority, but are likely to take over if sensible, right-minded types do not watch out!

Heather Causnett,

Escrick Park Gardens,

Escrick,

York.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.