Libby Bateman and Tim Farron call for U-turn on cuts to summer rail services

The Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of Cumbria Libby Bateman, and the Westmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Farron, have written a joint letter to the Secretary of State for Transport, Heidi Alexander, urging her to reverse planned cuts to rail services on the West Coast Main Line this summer.

Avanti West Coast is to cut around one in seven trains on its busiest routes, following a Government request to reduce spending

About 38 daily weekday services will be removed from timetables during a six-week period from 20th July.

In a letter to the Transport Secretary, Libby and Tim argue that cutting services over the summer months risks having a negative impact on the Lake District tourism industry. 

They said: “To bring in a reduction of services during the summer, which is obviously such a crucial time for Cumbria’s £4.6bn tourism economy, is short-sighted and yet further proof that this Labour Government treats our county as nothing more than an afterthought.

“We are very concerned that these cuts will lead to overcrowded trains, which will inevitably result in services being delayed.

“Rail services on the West Coast Mainline already continue to be dysfunctional, due to a variety of reasons, chiefly staff shortages and long-running infrastructure problems.

“And we already have a situation where nine-car trains are too often used rather than eleven-car trains.

“We are also very wary that anything which increases the likelihood of people opting to choose the car rather than public transport will exacerbate congestion issues in the central Lake District, which again has a hugely negative knock-on impact on our local economy.

“The Lake District is for everyone, not just for those who can afford private transport.

“We therefore request you to urgently think again and reverse these cuts to rail services, which risk being a hammer blow to the Cumbrian economy.”