Eleven bus routes in Westmorland & Furness will continue to run until next spring and 10 routes until November.
The routes are being supported by Westmorland & Furness Council, thanks to £1.7 million-worth of funding from the Government.
The short-term funding aims to create a commercially viable network of self-sustaining bus routes.
Amongst the 11 new routes now being subsidised is the 105 linking Greystoke and Penrith.
The 105 had been absent from timetables for over a decade, and a local Greystoke Bus Action Group successfully fought the case for it to be reinstated.
The group has now become the Greystoke Bus User Group and is chaired by Pam Wood.
She said: “We knew that some people were feeling they would have to sell their house as they got older because they couldn’t access shops and medical appointments. That is now less of an issue because they can live in the village they love, whilst catching the bus and stay connected to vital services in the town.”
The 11 new services funded until spring 2026 are:
- 1 Walney Biggar Bank – Barrow Hospital: doubling the Sunday daytime frequency from hourly to every 30 minutes
- 2 & 4 Walney West Shore – Barrow Holbeck Park: later journeys from 7:15pm to 11:15pm
- 3 Barrow Newbarns – Ormsgill: doubling the Sunday daytime frequency to every 30 minutes
- 11 Ulverston – Barrow via Coast Road: new twice a day Friday service and an extra return journey on a Tuesday to bring the level of service in line with other days providing better access to local services for residents and local camp sites
- 105 Greystoke – Penrith: new Monday to Saturday service improving links from villages West of Penrith
- 106 Shap – Penrith via Lowther and Clifton: new twice daily Monday to Saturday service
- 2P Penrith North Lakes School – Castletown: restoring popular afternoon school bus
- 646 Penrith Town Service: earlier and later journeys on schooldays
- 561 Appleby – Kendal: new Wednesday direct service
- 563 Kirkby Stephen – Appleby – Penrith: enhanced current off-peak service with extra journeys including peak times for work and education
- X12 Coniston – Ulverston: new Summer Saturday service introducing four trips per day
The 10 council-funded routes that will be maintained until November are:
- 6 Barrow – Windemere: additional journey on a Sunday morning and daily late evening service improving access to employment in the central Lakes and late return
- 40 Kendal Town: hourly Sunday service improving access across Kendal
- 104 Penrith – Carlisle: doubling the frequency of the current Monday to Saturday service to every 30 minutes
- 530 Cartmel – Kendal: Monday to Friday service four times a day
- 532 Cartmel – Grange: Monday to Friday service five times a day
- 552 (Carnforth then) Arnside – Kendal: Two journeys a day on a Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday enhancing the commercial Monday, Wednesday, and Friday service
- 555 Kendal – Lancater via Milnthorpe and Holme: extra later return service
- 597 Windermere Town Service: Friday morning service every 30 minutes enhancing the locally funded Tuesday and Thursday service
- 680A Alston – Carlisle: one trip a day on a Monday and Wednesday.
- X4/5 Penrith – Keswick: doubling the daytime frequency of the Monday to Saturday service to every 30 minutes.
Last week, Cumberland Council agreed a major expansion of bus services in north and West Cumbria.
