Rail cuts threaten to derail summer tourism in the Lake District, an MP and an aspiring mayor have warned.
Tim Farron, MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, and Libby Bateman, the Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of Cumbria, have written to Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, urging her to rethink planned reductions to services on the West Coast Main Line.
Avanti West Coast is to cut around one in seven trains on its busiest routes.
The cuts, following a request by the Government to reduce spending, will see about 38 daily weekday services removed for six weeks starting July 20.
Avanti West Coast said it had proposed removing some services with lower demand in response to a request from the Department for Transport (DfT) to cut costs.
In a joint letter, Ms Bateman and Mr Farron say that bringing in a reduction of services at "such a crucial time" for Cumbria's tourism economy is "short-sighted"
They wrote: "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."
The pair also raised concerns about the impact on how people choose to travel.
They said: "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."
An Avanti West Coast spokesperson said: "From 20 July to 28 August we will be operating an amended timetable between London and Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester on weekdays.
"To ensure minimal impact to those travelling between the affected dates, these changes will only affect routes on which we operate more than one train per hour - during typically less busy periods of the day - maximising alternative journey options.
"We'd like to encourage customers planning to make journeys during this time to plan ahead, and thank them for their understanding."
A spokesperson for the DfT said: "This will save taxpayers money while still meeting passenger demand for seats."
Confirmed candidates for the 2027 election are Mike Starkie (Conservative), Libby Bateman (Liberal Democrats) and David Allen (Labour)
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