New rail service linking Lockerbie with London and central Scotland to launch in 2026 - Daily Record

New rail service linking Lockerbie with London and central Scotland to launch in 2026FirstGroup will operate four return services a day on the new West Coast Main Line route under its Lumo

brand.NewsStuart Gillespie11:35, 02 Jun 2025FirstGroup's Lumo trains A new rail service linking Lockerbie with London and central Scotland is set to launch next year.

FirstGroup will operate four return services a day on the new West Coast Main Line route.

‌ The new service had been due to begin this year but has been pushed back to mid 2026 “following the delivery of the trains and staff training”.

‌READ MORE: Costa Coffee reveals plans to open third Dumfries store this summerREAD MORE: Dumfries and Galloway Scottish Water staff start week-long strike action FirstGroup has sealed a

deal with Eversholt Rail for five trains to run on the route between Stirling and London Euston.

It will call at Milton Keynes Central, Nuneaton, Crewe, Preston, Carlisle, Lockerbie, Motherwell, Whifflet, Greenfaulds and Larbert.

Article continues below Trains will be operated under FirstGroup’s Lumo brand, which currently runs only on the East Coast Main Line between London King’s Cross and Edinburgh.

The trains will have around 340 standard class seats.

FirstGroup chief executive Graham Sutherland said: “The mobilisation of our new service between London and Stirling is another important step towards rolling out Lumo as a nationwide

operator and growing our open access capacity, a key priority for the group.

Article continues below Click here for more news and sport from Dumfries and Galloway.

“Our investment and capabilities in open access rail have delivered reliable, value-for-money services, grown rail demand and helped to spur economic growth and connect communities.

“We look forward to doing the same on our new services.”