Latest news with #BBCRadioCumbria
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Northern pins reliability hopes on new trains
The reliability of rail operator Northern will improve when up to 450 new trains start to come into service at the end of the decade, bosses have claimed. The company's regional stakeholder manager Owain Roberts, quizzed by BBC Radio Cumbria listeners on Wednesday, said he was "very, very sorry" passengers had experienced high numbers of cancellations over recent years. Earlier this year, the publicly-owned operator invited manufacturers to begin negotiations for supplying new trains to run across the north of England. Mr Roberts said the new trains would be a "game changer" but admitted: We still have a long way to go." "That's no excuse or consolation for customers who's journeys are being disrupted," Mr Roberts said on BBC Radio Cumbria's Hotseat programme. Northern Trains is owned by the Department for Transport through a holding company [PA] In July, the company was issued a "breach notice" by the Department for Transport for cancelling too many trains. Performance figures for April showed about 64% of services ran on time. In its latest improvement plan, Northern said that by 2027 it wanted 90% of its trains to be on time, with only 2% cancellations. Mr Roberts said some routes, including the Cumbrian Coast Line, get "battered by the weather". He said single track sections meant, even if there is just one cancellation, users could "potentially be waiting two hours for a train". The company is working with Network Rail to improve infrastructure following recent issues, including on the Furness Line which has seen sinkholes, landslips and floods, Mr Roberts said. Mental health support The rail boss said 60% of Northern's fleet was between 32 and 40 years old and those carriages operated in various parts of the region, including on the Tyne Valley route. "They are reaching the end of their lives," Mr Roberts said. Tenders were submitted in January for a mix of electric and multi-modal (diesel/electric) powered trains to enter service in 2030. "They will be fantastic when they arrive," Mr Roberts said. He also told listeners that train crew availability was "less of an issue than at the end of last year". He said Northern had worked to improve its "pipeline of training" and insisted it had "enough drivers within the business to operate the train plan". It was also working on "suppressing sickness levels" by partnering with mental health support groups like Andy's Man Club to encourage people to "work through their issues and to promote good wellbeing". He said mental health issues were affecting society and were "not just within railways". Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. More on this story Related internet links
BBC News
02-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Foundations in place for Barrow to kick on
Barrow manager Andy Whing is confident that good foundations have been laid to allow the team to kick on next Bluebirds are 16th in League Two heading into their final match at Colchester, but on a run of only one defeat in 12 replacing Stephen Clemence in January, Whing believes he has put in place the building blocks to push higher up the league in 2025-26."Next year we want to be in those pressurised situations at the top end of the table and hopefully we're laying those foundations for that now," he told BBC Radio Cumbria. Whing is thrilled at how his players have not let up despite their League Two status long being assured for next season."The biggest thing for me is I see smiles on faces and the lads enjoying it," he said."If the lads enjoy where they work and where they play, that is a big positive for us. Culture and environment is massive and I think we've got that in the last few weeks."
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Yahoo
Walker and children find dog remains in suitcase
A woman has described how upsetting it was to find the remains of a dog in a suitcase while out walking with her children. Cara Harper was walking her dogs with her children and other family members when they made the gruesome discovery in Cavendish Dock, near the Old Mills, in Barrow-in-Furness on Saturday. Ms Harper said the dog had "been slung like it was a bag of rubbish", adding everyone was "so upset". Cumbria Police said they received a report about the discovery of dog remains at about 18:00 BST and said the council had been contacted to remove the suitcase. Ms Harper said a recent fire in an overgrown area of the bank meant the family was able to spot the suitcase where it had been discarded in the undergrowth. "My eldest son jumped down the bank to get the suitcase and tried to pull it up to the top," she told BBC Radio Cumbria. "He said 'mam, this is pretty heavy'," she continued. Ms Harper said they opened it, and then "the kids all freaked out". "It wasn't a nice sight. "That poor dog. It is so cruel," she added. The RSPCA said: "This is a very sad incident, but it hasn't been reported to us and we are urging anyone with first-hand information to contact the police." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. RSPCA Cumbria Police
BBC News
15-04-2025
- BBC News
Walker and children find dog remains in suitcase in Barrow
A woman has described how upsetting it was to find the remains of a dog in a suitcase while out walking with her children. Cara Harper was walking her dogs with her children and other family members when they made the gruesome discovery in Cavendish Dock, near the Old Mills, in Barrow-in-Furness on Harper said the dog had "been slung like it was a bag of rubbish", adding everyone was "so upset".Cumbria Police said they received a report about the discovery of dog remains at about 18:00 BST and said the council had been contacted to remove the suitcase. Ms Harper said a recent fire in an overgrown area of the bank meant the family was able to spot the suitcase where it had been discarded in the undergrowth. "My eldest son jumped down the bank to get the suitcase and tried to pull it up to the top," she told BBC Radio Cumbria. "He said 'mam, this is pretty heavy'," she continued. Ms Harper said they opened it, and then "the kids all freaked out"."It wasn't a nice sight."That poor dog. It is so cruel," she added. The RSPCA said: "This is a very sad incident, but it hasn't been reported to us and we are urging anyone with first-hand information to contact the police." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Pigeon's medal for war bravery unveiled at museum
A medal awarded to a homing pigeon who helped the Dutch resistance during World War Two has been unveiled at a museum. Tommy, a pigeon from Dalton-in-Furness in Cumbria, was given the Dickin Medal in 1946 after he carried a message home from the resistance that led to a raid on an enemy facility. The medal was bought by the Dock Museum in Barrow-in-Furness for £30,000 at an auction earlier this year. Louise Burrow, the granddaughter of the bird's owner, said she was "thrilled" that the medal had "come back home to roost" during an unveiling ceremony. Tommy belonged to William Brockbank who lived in Dalton and worked at the shipyard in Barrow. Speaking to BBC Radio Cumbria, Mr Brockbank's grandson Richard Higgin said: "I'm absolutely over the moon. "It's so great that local people will be able to see the medal first hand." The Dickin Medal is the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross. Tommy was blown off course during a race in Dorset in 1942 and ended up in the Netherlands. A resistance member, who identified the bird as British from its leg ring, tied a message about an arms factory near Amsterdam on his leg and sent him home. Tommy was shot and wounded by German soldiers, but survived the 400-mile (644km) flight back to England and the message resulted in the destruction of the arms site during an Allied air raid. Collections and exhibitions manager at the museum, Charlotte Hawley, said there were plans to create an animated film about the bird's life, as wells as workshops for schools and local community groups. "The sky's the limit, so to speak," she said. There are also plans to hang hundreds of woollen poppies on railings around the museum in honour of Tommy on VE Day later this year. Organiser Deirdre Kerr, from Dalton, said she remembered her mother telling her Tommy's story when she was a child. "I thought it was a fairy story and it wasn't until I was an adult that I realised it was true," Ms Kerr said. "I'm so pleased the medal has come home." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Bravery medal awarded to pigeon sold for £30k War hero pigeon honoured with remembrance display Dock Museum
