Rail bosses have pledged to clean up their act after a complaint that windows on trains on the Wharfedale and Airedale lines are so filthy passengers couldn't see out.

Baildon man Charles Charnock has slammed dirty train windows on trains on the Wharfedale line saying that it's impossible to see out of the grimy glass.

Mr Charnock, 73, who regularly travels to Ilkley on the line, said: "They must never clean them. If the sun shines on the windows all you can see is a red haze, it's a disgrace. It must give a really bad impression of our area and trains to visitors."

A spokesman for the train operator Northern Spirit said there was a problem caused by a broken train-washing machine in Leeds and that because of Mr Charnock's complaint it was possible that some trains would now be washed by hand.

Mr Charnock is so incensed by the state of the windows he is now vowing to stop using the trains.

Derrick Joanes, secretary of the Wharfedale Rail Users Group, said: "There are certainly trains where there is a lot of grime on the windows and I don't know why the carriage cleaning crew can't keep up with it.

"It shouldn't just be brushed under the carpet."

A spokesman for Wharfedale and Airedale train operator Northern Spirit said: "At the moment trains are washed at least once every three days.

"We are not aware of it being a major problem but as a result of this complaint we are looking at hand-washing trains."

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