Regular readers know the ‘Cambrian News’ has been quite critical of Transport For Wales in recent years, but as a train travel lover and a glass half full person, I’ve always defended them.

Four slightly problematic train journeys in two months have, however, shaken my faith a little...

Not in them so much, but the whole train network, because every operator I travelled with in April and May seemed to encounter a problem or two, and when you throw Network Rail in the mix, who I believe are responsible for things like signals - sorry if I’m wrong - you have a whole host of issues that can arise as you journey across the country.

Problematic passengers don’t help either. One of my trains earlier this month was delayed, I quote, “due to passengers causing a disturbance on the train”. Sigh.

I’ve been trying to convince train averse Aberystwyth friends how easy it is to travel on our train. There’s only one platform here for a start; what could possibly go wrong?

I tell anyone who’ll listen how fantastic the service from Aberystwyth-Birmingham International Airport is, regaling them with tales of how our holidays start right here in Ceredigion.

“Pack a bag, get on the train, have a picnic, a glass of your favourite tipple, relax, read, watch the wonderful Welsh scenery, have a nap, walk to the onboard toilet as you continue to make your journey without the trouble of having to find and stop at the nearest public convenience,” I say.

“It’s so easy! You don’t even have to change trains!”

I was excited to show my mum this during a trip to London.

“Just watch,” I said smugly, as I managed to grab an unreserved table with room for all four of our party to sit together.

My description of a stress free journey played out until a muffled tannoy announcement was made as we approached Shrewsbury.

“What was that?” multiple passengers asked.

I feared whatever it was meant we would have to hastily grab our things and leave our seats and coveted table to disembark this train for another. A lovely TfW conductor confirms my fears as he walks the carriages to announce in person what the tannoy could not convey. Why is it so hard to hear those announcements? Gripe one.

Gripe two is the unexpected change of trains making me look daft when I’d been full of how easy and direct the Aberystwyth-Birmingham International route is...

However, this was a small inconvenience and I reassured my party that, although annoying, switching trains is easy enough, and so it was. We even managed to bag another table with four empty seats. Hooray!

The rest of the journey to London via Birmingham - through which I pointed out to mum that she, despite the hiccup at Shrewsbury, could still easily get to the airport on her own – passed by uneventfully.

The same cannot be said for the return journey, which saw us getting stuck somewhere - Chiltern perhaps - on a blisteringly hot day when a train further down the line broke down.

My metaphorical glass still half full, this did not faze me. I was safe, warm (okay, maybe a little too warm), but I was relaxed reading my book. Other passengers were not, however, and as time ticked by, they took it out on the conductor. Poor dab.

We arrived home an hour late and I was told to put in a Delay, Repay claim.

“You can get 50 per cent of your fare back,” someone said, but our party of three adults and one child travelled pretty cheaply on a Friends and Family railcard so I didn’t bother.

Fast forward to May Bank Holiday, however, and I felt differently.

My destination this time, a friend’s wedding in Kent. I got a good deal once I purchased a Two Together railcard for my husband and I to travel, but when we, for various reasons – cars crashing near stations, signal faults, bad behaviour of passengers, services not starting at Birmingham International as advertised and no way of catching it up at New Street instead, etc., etc. - arrived in Kent two hours late and returned home to Aberystwyth one hour late, I decided in the interests of research, to claim compensation.

That was on 5 May and at the time of writing this column I haven’t heard a thing...

If my claim’s successful and I’m refunded £157.50 I’ll be delighted, but refunding trips isn’t sustainable and will, surely, lead to further problems down the line… See what I did there?

These bad experiences haven’t put me off trains, but I can see why regular users get angry if this is the standard of service they rely on to get to school, college, work and appointments.

I don’t know how to fix the system but I will continue to let the train take the strain as they say for group travel, because the price of solo journeys at short notice is eye-watering! Perhaps that’s a subject for another day...