Press release -
Journey through Cumbria with Virgin Trains’ railway day at Carlisle
Virgin Trains is offering the chance for members of the public to experience the railway in Cumbria with a unique event at Carlisle station.
The Carlisle Railway Day follows the success of the same event last year bringing together industry partners, local businesses and community groups to celebrate the region’s railway and raise money for Virgin Trains’ charity partner, Rethink Mental Illness.
Visitors to the station on Saturday, 8 June, will be able to experience the journey from London Euston to Glasgow Central in eight minutes with speeded-up footage taken from the driver’s cab of a Pendolino train, which serve Virgin’s route through Cumbria.
There will also be model railway displays, memorabilia, entertainment, and pop-up shops and stands from local businesses and attractions as well as drone footage of lines that connect into Carlisle.
Virgin Trains will be hosting workshops for children to have a go at being a station announcer and to dispatch a locomotive*. Other activities for younger visitors will be available through the day, including a magician and Storytime with Virgin’s Sammy the Safety Bear.
Mark Green, Virgin Trains Station Manager at Carlisle, said: “Following the success of our first railway day last year we’re really excited to be hosting another event at Carlisle to celebrate the important role rail plays here in the city and wider region. Having served Cumbria for over 20 years we know what a great place it is, so we’re pleased to be joining industry partners, businesses and the community to champion what the region has to offer. We look forward to welcoming people to the station for what we’re sure will be a great day for all ages!”
Carlisle Railway Day will take place at Carlisle station on Saturday 8th June from 10am – 4pm. For more information or to book onto a workshop, visit the Team Leader’s Office on Platform 4.
*Only 15 spaces are available for the station announcer and dispatch workshops
ENDS
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About Virgin Trains
Stagecoach and Virgin are working in partnership to operate the West Coast inter-city route under the Virgin Trains brand, revolutionising travel on one of the UK’s key rail arteries.
The network connects some of the nation’s most iconic destinations including Glasgow, Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester and London.
Virgin Trains is committed to delivering a high speed, high frequency service, offering shorter journey times, more comfortable travel and excellent customer service. Customers consistently rate Virgin Trains ahead of other long-distance rail franchise operators in the National Rail Passenger Survey (NRPS) commissioned by industry watchdog, Transport Focus.
Virgin Trains has a proud record of challenging the status quo - from introducing tilting Pendolino trains, to a pioneering automated delay repay scheme, introducing the industry-leading onboard entertainment streaming service, BEAM, and becoming the first franchised rail operator to offer m-Tickets for all ticket types.
Virgin Trains operated the East Coast route between March 1, 2015 and June 24, 2018. In that time, we invested £75m to create a more personalised travel experience, including over £40m in the existing fleet. Customers have benefitted from 48 additional services between Edinburgh and London every week, and an extra 22 Saturday services between Leeds and London – a total of 1.74 million additional seats since May 2015.
Working together, the partnership railway of the public and private sectors has published a long-term plan, called In Partnership for Britain’s Prosperity, to change and improve Britain’s railway. The plan will secure almost £85bn of additional economic benefits to the country whilst enabling further investment and improvement, and contains four commitments which will see rail companies: strengthen our economic contribution to the country; improve customers’ satisfaction; boost the communities we serve; and, create more and better jobs in rail. For more information go to Britain Runs on Rail.
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Press Office: 0845 000 3333.
