CHANGES are being made to rail services on the Cumbrian coastline.

Northern Rail, the UK’s largest train operator, has announced a range of improvements in its annual timetable change.

From Sunday December 8, services between Lancaster and Barrow and Lancaster and Morecambe are being retimed to fit with changes to First TransPennine Express services between Manchester Airport and Scotland/Barrow.

In addition, the Monday to Friday 11:50 Carlisle – Barrow service will now call at all stations apart from Nethertown and Braystones.

Seascale, which is currently a request stop, will also become a mandatory call in all services planned to call there.

The Sunday service between Carlisle – Whitehaven will also benefit from an additional service in each direction. 

Lee Wasnidge, Area Director for Northern Rail comments: “The Cumbrian Coast is a bustling and vibrant community and it’s fantastic that we can continue to improve the train service we offer.

"Being able to adapt to incoming changes brought on by the introduction of additional trains and services goes to show how well the rail industry works together for a common goal.”

Councillor Keith Little, Cumbria County Council Cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “These improvements to services on the Cumbrian Coast Line are great news for rail users in the county.

"Through the Community Rail Partnership, the county council will continue to work closely with Northern Rail to help secure further improvements to services and rolling stock for the benefit of passengers, reflecting both local business and community travel needs.”

For more information on changes to timetables, visit northernrail.org or follow @northernrailorg on Twitter.