Commuters are said to be left standing on the platform as overcrowding and delays cause problems getting to work, school and connecting trains.
Concerns have been raised about peak-time services at Bromley Cross railway station, with residents reporting trains arriving late or with too few carriages to accommodate everyone waiting.
Train operator Northern responded by stating changes are now being introduced, with trains having more carriages.
Cllr Charlotte Cadden, of Bromley Cross and Egerton, visited the station from 7.30am after receiving complaints about Northern's services over recent weeks.
She said: "Over the past three or four weeks, I've had a couple of residents raising the issue of late trains, trains that don't have enough carriages, and the fact that often there's 20 to 30 people left on the platform.
"They're really frustrated, angry in some occasions, because they can't get on the train and therefore they can't get the connecting train in Manchester or they can't get to work on time.
"Some young people use the train to get into Bolton and then get a bus out to their school. They can't get to school on time."
Cllr Cadden observed three morning services during her visit.
She said the 7.39am service had two carriages and passengers were able to board after some "pushing", while the 8.08am service arrived 12 minutes late with four carriages.
She said passengers expecting to make connections to London and Milton Keynes told her the delay meant they expected to miss those trains.
The 8.39am service arrived around 10 minutes late with two carriages, according to Cllr Cadden, with congestion on the line given as the reason for the delay.
This comes amid wider changes planned for Greater Manchester's railways, with rail services gradually due to become part of the Bee Network from December 2026 and further routes joining during 2027 and 2028.
Cllr Cadden said: "The fact that those trains are regularly not on time, often only have two carriages at peak time, is just not acceptable when you're paying money for a service that's not happening.
"The issues are multiple. It's late trains and trains that aren't big enough for the number of commuters at peak times.
"But those are things that should be resolvable, I think, with a bit of work with the train company."
She praised the member of staff working at Bromley Cross station, who she said had already been raising passenger concerns with managers.
Cllr Cadden now wants regular commuters to consider coming together to strengthen their voice when raising concerns about the station.
She added: "Strength in numbers, get people together who are concerned about a particular issue, get everybody's ideas and then speak to the people who can actually do something about those issues.
"I think if we work together and get a group of regular rail users together, there's potentially something we can do about two main issues, which is the number of carriages at peak times and timeliness."
A Northern spokesperson said: “We are working hard to provide passengers travelling on this route with a reliable service and enough seats and space on board.
“In recent months we have been hampered by issues affecting our ageing fleet and have been forced to run some shorter trains.
“The situation is improving and from today will be running more four-carriage trains between Clitheroe and Manchester Victoria via Bromley Cross, during busier periods of the day.
“However, there are a number of services that will continue to run with two carriages. We will be limiting the number of cheaper Advance Purchase tickets available for these services."
More than 95 per cent of Northern services calling at the station ran without being cancelled during the latest period.
The train operator is also looking to make the largest investment in its fleet in its history, with plans to purchase up to 450 new trains.
The new trains would be introduced in phases and replace the oldest trains currently in use, many of which have been operating since the 1980s and 1990s.
Northern aims to replace around two-thirds of its existing fleet over the next 10 years.
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