Lumo: Why won’t the new train service stop at Yorkshire stations?

The new electric rail service will run from October 25 with fares starting from a low cost of £14.90.

The goal is to encourage a more environmentally friendly mode of transportation and affordable travel. Lumo will provide low-carbon emissions, affordable long-distance travel for more than one million passengers every year.

Sixty per cent of single fares will be sold at a cost of £30 or less and the trains will run on the East Coast Main Line, calling at Newcastle, Morpeth and Stevenage to help improve regional connectivity.

However, the trains will not be stopping at any Yorkshire stations due to competition rules with other rail services.

Helen Wylde, managing director of Lumo, said: “We are sorry we can’t stop more often. Our main aim is to encourage air and coach passengers travelling long distances to choose rail.”

“The East Coast Main Line already has lots of services covering locations where that is not the primary consideration. To put this into perspective, Edinburgh and Newcastle airports account for around half of all domestic air traffic to London.”

The rail service, which is owned by FirstGroup, aims to create more than 13 million additional passenger journeys in the next 10 years whilst also reducing carbon emissions by encouraging people to use greener, electric travel.

Over the next decade, it is expected to contribute £250 million to the UK economy and Lumo has invested £15 million on digital and IT infrastructure, as well as £100 million on the manufacture and maintenance involved.