Frequently Asked Questions about this site

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This website has been created as a repository for the combined, all-in-one, Guide to Train Services which covers the popular routes of:

• The Cumbrian Coast and Furness Lines - between Preston, Lancaster, Grange-over-Sands, Barrow-in-Furness, Sellafield, Raveglass, Whitehaven, Workington and Carlisle
• The Lakes Line - between Preston, Lancaster, Oxenholme, Kendal and Windermere
• The Settle and Carlisle Line - between Leeds, Skipton, Settle, Ribblehead, Appleby-in-Westmoreland and Carlsile
• The Bentham - 'Little North Western' - Line - between Leeds, Skipton, Bentham, Wennington, Lancaster and Morecambe
• The Tyne Valley Line - between Carlisle, Haltwhistle, Hexham, Metro Centre and Newcastle
• The Sou'western - between Carlisle, Gretna Green, Dumfries, Kilmarnock and Glasgow

The Guide came into being during the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic when all train operators were directly instructed by the Department of Transport not to print any physical timetables owing to the frequent changes that were ocuring.

However in late-2020 as the pandemic had eased in Cumbria, and as a result of local representation, a special 'one-off' guide was produced to serve the Cumbrian Communities that rely on the train service between Lancaster, Barrow-in-Furness and Carlisle (The Furness and Cumbrian Coast Lines) and also trains between Lancaster, Oxenholme and Windermere (The Lakes Line) - basically a mimick of Northern's timetable guide 6.

In Summer 2021; the guide was reissued and expanded to include the Leeds to Settle & Carlisle line - including the Summer Staycation Express services; the Leeds to Bentham and Morecambe line and also the Carlisle to Hexham and Newcastle line. Details of Rover and Ranger tickets for the respective routes were also included.

The Winter 2021 issue, carried Summer over, with some minor changes to the timetable layout and also included a timetable for Stagecoach's Open Top 599 bus service between Bowness and Windermere.

The Summer 2022 issue saw an increase in the number of bus services contain , with at least a quarter of Stagecoach's Lakes area bus network contained.

The Summer 2023 issue has seen the addition of the 'The Sou'western' route between Carlisle, Gretna Green, Dumfries, Kilmarnock and Glasgow included.

The main data is taken from Northern's timetable system and, for the Lakes Line and West Coast Main Line services, from Fabrick Communications.

No.

 This site is provided independent of the train operators which are shown in the guide, and information published by them and on National Rail Enquiries should always be treated as official.

The Guide is available at all staffed rail stations in Cumbria as well as a few selected few outside Cumbria too.

However, please note that you may need to ask for guide as in some stations, printed information is not readily available in station rack

The National Rail Enquries website will tell you of all planned engineering work. Simply put in the the date you wish to travel, select either 'Northern', 'Avanti West Coast' or 'TransPennine Express' from the drop down and click the Submit button and the change will be listed.

You can also plan your journey using the Journey Planner on the National Rail Enquiries website. The journey planner will show if your journey will either be a train, a replacement bus service or a bit of both. Please note that information in the Journey Planner is only currently correct 4 weeks ahead of 'today'.

You can check to see if your train service is running on time by entering your station name on one of the following websites:

• National Rail Enquries
• Real Time Trains.

Real Time Trains will also tell you what type of train is used, the unit number, how many carriages the service is formed off and what facilities you can expect to find onboard. Note that at times of disruption/last minute changes Real Time Trains does not always reflect the changes.

Real-time information can also be found on the Train Operator's own websites and via their apps.