Lancaster group uses open letter to ask rail firm to reconsider planned timetable changes

There is currently a public consultation ongoing until December 31 for anyone to comment on the plans, and Lancaster Vision have written to the rail service to outline their concerns.

Lancaster Vision - a subgroup of Lancaster Civic Society - was established in 2012 by members who identified, because of concerns over the future of the castle, the need for an organisation to help secure a better future for the city and its surroundings.

They believe the proposed changes to the timetables will have a negative effect on train users in the Lancaster and Morecambe area, particularly those wishing to fly into Manchester Airport in the evening or experience nightlife in the city.

James Wilkie, chair of Lancaster Vision, has written to Northern Rail asking them to reconsider their plans.

"The new timetable, which lasts from December 12 to May 14, has a last train to Lancaster from Manchester Oxford Road leaving at 10.29pm Monday-Saturday which serves the theatre and Manchester nightlife activities," he said.

"This train is from Manchester Airport at 10.10pm serving planes arriving up to 9pm allowing for baggage and passport checks.

"We have seen a draft timetable for 2022 which seems to reduce the last departure time to about 9.30pm. This timetable is part of a review of congestion in the Manchester area.

"Not only would such a timetable cut out theatre visits from Lancaster but as the last service would leave the airport at 9.10pm, it would leave passengers returning from holiday or business trips abroad after about 8pm with no rail connection to Lancaster and beyond.

"As it is the practice for UK airlines and tour operators to fly passengers out in the mornings and back in the afternoons there are often no early flights from some holiday destinations leaving no public transport options for many passengers.

"We cannot see the Manchester rail network being congested at this time of the evening so there seems little sense in the proposal.

"We consider these proposed changes would be extremely detrimental to the citizens of Lancaster and would urge you to reconsider."

Chris Jackson, regional director for Northern, said: “We are currently consulting on our plans for future timetable options across north west England.

“These indicative timetables have been developed after industry and stakeholder discussions seeking to provide the best possible and most reliable service provision.

“The consultation is open to all and we would encourage passengers, communities and organisations to provide feedback before December 31.

“It is always difficult to balance the aspirations of all communities across the rail network but our aim is to deliver a service that customers can rely upon.”