REGARDING the £100,000 electronic timetable system in Blackburn that has never worked since it was put in three years ago (LET, August 14), a local authority spokesman states that this was only ever experimental. This is easy to say when you do not have to pay for it.

In industry, when a manufacturer wants to put a system in similar to this, it is looked upon as being a joint effort -- the onus being on the people testing the equipment to point out any failures to the manufacturer so that the problems can be overcome.

Then, on completion of trials and with the system, hopefully, proving to be fit for the purpose, a price is agreed on, taking into consideration the difficulties that have arisen -- in this case over three years.

For the manufacturers not to have been challenged on this system being fit for the purpose and £100,000 being written off as incidental by councillors is ridiculous. I think that we should be looking at whether the councillors are fit for purpose as well as the electronic timetable.

ROY DAVIES, Olive Lane, Darwen.