routes

TRAIN travel can be very expensive in the UK, especially when you’re travelling halfway across the country.

But one train company that offers affordable tickets has applied to start two additional direct routes between major UK cities.

Lumo, which offers affordable journeys onboard its fleet of electric trains, has plans to add even more routes to its network.

FirstGroup, which owns Lumo, has revealed that it has submitted applications to begin new direct routes between Cardiff and York, and Rochdale and London Euston.

The Cardiff to York route would run via Birmingham, Derby, and Sheffield.

Meanwhile, the Rochdale to Euston route would stop at Manchester Victoria, Eccles, Newton-le-Willows, and Warrington Bank Quay.

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The company hopes these routes will be operational by December 2028.

Lumo hopes to run return services between the cities to six times a day throughout the week from Cardiff to York.

It hopes that this journey would “replicate the success of the Edinburgh to London service” which Lumo started in 2021.

As for the Rochdale to London route, the application proposes three return services on weekdays and Sundays and four services every Saturday.

Lumo said this would provide residents of the north-west a “convenient and competitively priced” direct rail service to London. 

The train company also applied to extend its new route between Scotland’s Stirling and London Euston.

The service between Stirling and London has been approved and will start to run from next year.

The new application has asked for it to be extended past May 2030 when the contract currently ends.

Lumo’s new route will link London Euston directly to Stirling, calling at Milton Keynes, Nuneaton, Crewe, Preston, Carlisle, Lockerbie, Motherwell, Whifflet (serving Coatbridge), Greenfaulds (serving Cumbernauld) and Larbert.

Lumo tries to keep its train fares affordable and aims for 60 per cent of its single fares to be under £30.

Onboard a Lumo train, there are no first class seat options. But wherever you sit, you’ll have USB sockets and tray tables.

Passengers can also personalise their lighting through the button on the back of the seat in front of them.

Additional amenities include free Wi-Fi, a winged headrest for comfort and a coat hanger.

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Lumo will connect two more major cities from December 2025…

Customers travelling between London and Glasgow can do so on a new Lumo service which starts in December 2025.

Lumo announced its new service on social media. It said: “Our new timetable starts on 14th December 2025!

“Our new Glasgow service will start in December and we’re also adding an additional service from Newcastle to London King’s Cross every weekday.”

Lumo plans to run two northbound and one southbound service on weekdays and one service in each direction on Sundays between London King’s Cross and Glasgow.

The new route will go between the two cities but will also stop at Falkirk High and Newcastle.

If booked in advance for journeys in 2026, tickets start from as little as £33.90. Anyone travelling from Newcastle to Glasgow can buy tickets for just £10.90.

For more on trains, here is the way that passengers can travel on UK trains without buying tickets.

Plus, this is where you can find the most beautiful train journey – it takes 10 minutes and costs £3.

Budget airline Ryanair has announced it is reducing capacity in another European hotspot this winter over a tax row with the German government – it comes after cuts to routes in Belgium and Spain

Ryanair has revealed plans to reduce its capacity in Germany this winter, following earlier route cuts in Spain and Belgium. The move will affect 24 routes across nine German airports, reducing the airline’s carrying capacity by 800,000 for the season.

The decision comes amid a tax dispute with the German Government. Ryanair is urging Germany’s transport minister to lower the costs of air travel in the country, claiming that current charges are reinforcing Lufthansa’s alleged “monopoly” in the region.

The Irish airline has warned the German government that it will relocate this cut capacity to other EU countries unless the 24% aviation tax increase introduced in May 2024 is reversed and air traffic control charges are reduced.

Speaking from Berlin, Ryanair’s CMO, Dara Brady, said: “It is very disappointing that the newly elected German Government has already failed to deliver on their commitment to reduce the regressive aviation tax and sky-high access costs which are crippling Germany’s aviation sector.

“As a result, Ryanair has been left with no choice but to reduce our Winter ’25 capacity by over 800,000 seats and cancel 24 routes across 9 high-cost German airports. This completely avoidable loss of connectivity will bring our capacity below Winter ’24 levels and will have a devastating impact on German connectivity, jobs, and tourism.”

The carrier told ministers that German air traffic will keep falling unless the nation becomes more competitive alongside other European destinations. But it also highlighted that if officials choose to slash costs, Ryanair could potentially double passenger numbers and generate more than 1,000 extra jobs across the country.

Ryanair’s reductions will affect the following airports, among others:

• Berlin
• Hamburg
• Memmingen
• Dortmund
• Dresden
• Leipzig

Germany transforms into a tourism magnet during winter months thanks to its famous Christmas markets. Plus the snow-covered landscapes of the Black Forest is an idyllic backdrop couples flock to for a cozy winter break.

Ryanair’s declaration follows shortly after it announced a 16% cut in its carrying capacity across Spain. Last month, the budget airline disclosed this was also down to a row over airport charges.

At the end of August, Ryanair slashed its operations to Brussels Airport by 6% citing “high” airport fees. CEO Michael O’Leary also confirmed the carrier wouldn’t be rolling out any expansion schemes in Belgium this winter because of the extra levies.

A UK train station that lost its direct routes to Europe during the pandemic could soon welcome them back.

Eurostar rival Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS) said they were likely to restart train routes from Ashford International Station when they launch.

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The Italian train operator revealed plans earlier this year to take on Eurostar with UK-Europe routes.

And it has since confirmed a £1billion investment into the UK economy which would include reopening the Kent station.

Initial plans include an “Innovation Hub” in Ashford International Station by early 2026, the Times reports.

The first trains to Europe will then launch in 2029 from London to Paris, which includes a stop in Ashford.

Rail minister Lord Peter Hendy also backed the return of European connections at Ashford International.

He said earlier this year: “I firmly believe that competition offers the best prospect of international services returning to Kent stations.”

Eurostar scrapped all trains from Ashford back in 2020, as well as trains at Ebbsfleet International.

Despite a campaign with more than 75,000 signatures for trains to return to Ashford, Eurostar has yet to confirm if they will.

Initial suggestions of reopening it in 2026 have been quashed.

The Eurostar has been the only railway line to use the Channel Tunnel since 1994.

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However, other operators have since revealed plans to take them on.

Virgin has revealed plans to launch trains from the UK to Europe by 2030.

This would include routes from London to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam – similar destinations to Eurostar.

Another rival is Gemini Trains, who has teamed up with Uber.

The new train operator recently bought 10 high speed trains ahead of plans to launch from both London and Ebbsfleet to Paris and Brussels by 2029.

Evolyn, a new start up, expressed plans for London-Paris trains back in 2023, with initial plans to launch next year.

And Eurostar themselves has revealed huge expansion plans, with potential new European destinations.

When it comes to France, it could relaunch train routes to Marseille and Bordeaux, having previously once stopped there.

And the CCO said they could also one day stop in cities in both Germany and Switzerland.

This could include places like Cologne and and Frankfurt, as well as Geneva and Zurich.

Here are four Eurostar routes that have been scrapped over the years.

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