This week's selection of your letters to the Helensburgh Advertiser includes thoughts on train times, bin collections, road markings, the Vale of Leven Hospital and the establishment of a 'sister city' link with the town.

To have your say on any subject of local interest, email your views (in no more than 350 words) to editorial@helensburghadvertiser.co.uk - happy writing!

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Sir - Perhaps 'fury' is too strong a word, but it makes a good headline for the disquiet and disappointment faced by rail travellers - not everyone is a commuter - from Helensburgh.

'Express train' is also a slight exaggeration for the two services that will not be restored to the timetable in August.

It is also true that some trains will return to three car length from the six cars that have been running during the period of the temporary timetable (when extra capacity was needed between Glasgow and Edinburgh) while the Queen Street tunnel has been closed.

It is to be hoped ScotRail will maintain longer trains on the services at rush hour time, especially as choice for Cardross and Helensburgh passengers has been slightly reduced.

It was expected that reliability and timekeeping would suffer during the time when diverted services were adding to congestion in the low level platforms at Queen Street. The situation should improve in August.

There are aspects of the present timetable that hint at a better overall quality of service in the near future. Among the positive features of the new timetable are the extra two stopping trains per hour between Glasgow and Dumbarton Central that avoid the need for Balloch trains to call at either Kilpatrick or Bowling Mondays to Saturdays.

This gives Dumbarton passengers an unprecedented choice of six trains every hour to and from Glasgow.

In the evenings the tedium of the long distance Helensburgh trains calling at stations between Hyndland and Dalmuir no longer applies, giving a standard journey time of 44 minutes all day, with better 'pathing' on the stretch through Yoker avoiding the slow running behind stopping services, or congestion at the junction at Jordanhill on  Glasgow-bound trains.

Finally, through journeys on Helensburgh trains to and from Edinburgh have been accelerated by ten minutes by redistributing some of the intermediate stops with the Milngavie services.

While I can appreciate the annoyance of losing the extra rush hour services, the positive features of the timetable should be noted. 

Kevin Boak, Helensburgh

Sir - The refuse system works pretty well and is easy to understand: blue  bin one week, green bin the next. Now the Council wishes to reduce the number of vehicles by two and the workforce by 3 persons to make savings.

To achieve this the council is proposing to pick up bins once in three weeks and to introduce a two-shift system, 6 am to 2pm and 2pm to 10pm. Under the new shift system the refuse staff who also drive the gritters will no longer be able to do so and it is now intended to train the grounds maintenance staff to do this instead.

Do we want our bins to be picked up at night, in the dark? Will it be safe for both workforce and householders? Should we expect inexperienced grounds staff to operate gritting vehicles and snow ploughs? Do we want a 3 week refuse service and will it be adequate for our needs? I doubt it.

Refuse collection is one of the key and basic services to be provided by a local authority and one which affects all of the population. If it works why change it?

The politicians of all persuasions, national and local, need to get their act together and reverse this ill-conceived proposal.

Mike Thornley, Glenarn, Rhu

Sir - I'm not sure why, but Argyll and Bute Council seems to be unable to co-ordinate road resurfacing with repainting of white lines and replacing cats eyes.

I've written twice before about the stretch of the A818 (Luss Road) around the bend at Daligan farm (a notorious accident spot), where we waited months, on two occasions, for the white lines to be reinstated. But the cats' eyes have never been replaced.

Now we have a section of the same road, on the bend at the Drumfad farm junction, that has been without white lines and cats eyes for months.

The Council seems to think that placing ‘No Road Markings’ signs on the road is sufficient, but, over time, the signs either end up in the ditch or part way across the road, creating a hazard in their own right.

A reply to one of my earlier letters, from a council member, disputed that the lack of white lines posed a hazard. However, anyone who drives this road in the dark (as I often do), particularly on a wet or misty morning, knows that it'sa difficult road and that oncoming traffic - particularly large delivery trucks - can stray over the centre of the road, even when the white lines and cats eyes are present.

Rule 127 of the Highway Code seems to agree: "a broken white line marks the centre of the road. When this line lengthens and the gaps shorten [as they do on the A818], it means that there is a hazard ahead". And catseye.co.uk says: "Cat’s eyes...improve road safety"

I hope this letter might prompt some action from the council to replace these, and any future, road markings in a more timely fashion.

James Greaves, Colquhoun Street, Helensburgh

Sir - I am sure I am not the only one who vividly recalls the SNP’s absolute denial that plans to cut services at the Vale were being hatched ahead of the Scottish elections.

Now only a few weeks have passed since the elections in May and the SNP’s assurances are as usual unravelling.

Whenever SNP ministers were challenged about plans to make cuts at the Vale we were told that services were guaranteed under the Vision for the Vale agreement.Yet again, they are now running away from their promises and feigning surprise at the recent announcement from the Health Board on cuts at the maternity unit.

Apart from the fact that generations of local families were born at the Vale, the hospital itself is absolutely crucial to this area and we should not and will not stand by and do nothing while our local hospital is shut down bit by bit.

The SNP must act now and guarantee the future of our services.

Doreen Williams, Garelochhead

Sir - I am writing to renew my appeal to anyone in Helensburgh interested in setting up a ‘Sister City’ relationship between the town and my present home of Oak Harbor, Washington.

I lived in Helensburgh from August 1998 to December 2000 and worked at the Navy Base at Coulport as US representative to the Royal Navy on the Trident missile programme.

Since returning to the States I have become involved in an organisation called Sister City, set up to foster cultural associations between cities.

I would like to contact a person in Helensburgh who may be able to help set up that Sister City relationship between Helensburgh and my present home town.

As the US Liaison Representative to the Royal Navy on the Trident missile programme and working at Coulport, it was one of the most enjoyable jobs I ever performed.

I looked forward to going to work each day.

While living in Helensburgh, I never felt like a stranger. Every local person I dealt with treated me with friendship and made me feel welcome.

We lived at Freedland-Rossdhu for almost three years in Helensburgh, and my wife Beth worked as office manager at the Royal Sailors Rest.

The Sister City Association is a non-profit citizen network creating and strengthening partnerships between Oak Harbor and international communities in an effort to increase global co-operation at the municipal level, to promote cultural understanding, and to stimulate economic development.

The association leads the movement for local community development and volunteer action by motivating and empowering private citizens, municipal officials, and business leaders to conduct long-term programmes of mutual benefit.

Oak Harbor is a town of 23,000 people, situated two hours north of Seattle, on Whidbey Island. Living here is very much like living in Helensburgh.

Although Oak Harbor is larger than Helensburgh, the atmosphere is basically the same.

Just like Helensburgh, Oak Harbor is on the water. There is a naval base here.

Most of all, though, if you came to Oak Harbor you would find the people to be very much like those in Helensburgh – friendly, open, helpful and nice.

If you would like to help pair Helensburgh with my home town, then please email editorial@helensburghadvertiser.co.uk and the Advertiser’s team will put you in touch with me.

James Campbell, Oak Harbor, Washington, USA