The changes bringing in parking charges for railway stations on the Airedale line will cause some consternation among commuters although they will not be unpopular with everybody.

There is no doubt that it will be another blow for those who use the train to travel to work every day on top of the cost of the rail fare, which also went up recently.

But if it encourages some of those commuters to walk to the station where possible, then it will have the double benefit of reducing car use on roads and helping encourage people to take exercise.

However, there will be many unable because of distance or health, or simply unwilling, to walk, and they will either simply accept the charge, or seek to find alternative spaces, which will in itself bring a new set of problems for residents and businesses near to the stations.

There is obviously an economic imperative in introducing these charges, and ultimately many of those who currently use the car parks will continue to pay as a captive market.

It may be there is also an environmental benefit if some travellers decide they can walk rather than drive to the station, but that in all fairness is likely to be relatively limited.

The Transport Secretary needs to think very, very carefully before introducing these charges, and consider whether there are other options to improve efficiencies.

And if he does press ahead with the proposals, it would be nice to think it would not just be a revenue generating exercise; surely some of the money raised could be ploughed back into the service to help continue encouraging passenger growth and all the benefits increased rail use will bring.