THE benefits to Plymouth of improving our city's antiquated rail links are incalculable.

Yet the costs of dragging our city's train services kicking and screaming into the 21st century are relatively minor. So the importance of today's meeting of business leaders, who are being urged to lobby Government for faster, better and more business-friendly rail services to the South West, cannot be understated. Plymouth's immediate economic prospects could be improved immeasurably by some targeted tweaks of the services between here and London. And with the Department for Transport currently consulting on the terms for a new Great Western rail franchise, now is the time to press home key demands which could transform Plymouth's standing as a regional business centre.

Put simply, our airport has closed and the chance of swift and major investment to upgrade our road network is remote, if not non-existent. So making our rail services much more attractive to the commercial and leisure communities could be the best – indeed only – way of boosting Plymouth's appeal to the national and international business world. Plymouth's Rail Franchise Task Force is not asking the earth. The demands being put forward are realistic, reasonable, sensible and achievable. They include calls for an early fast train from London which would arrive in Plymouth before 10am; a three-hour return around 5pm so travellers could do a full day's work in the city; more frequent three-hour trains to London; and better capacity on local services to relieve overcrowding during rush hours and in summer. They also want rolling stock to better suit the needs of the business community, allowing them to work effectively during their journeys with access to WiFi and continuous mobile phone coverage. All this is not pie in the sky; in 2012 it should be a given. Which is why we fully support Kevin Wigens, the Plymouth Cabinet member for transport, when he says: "It is of paramount importance that we take this rare opportunity to include improvements to our connectivity." This is our chance to make some key improvements – it is vital we seize it.