SWEET-toothed rail travellers will now have something to savour when they step on to the platform at Carnforth Railway Station.

For an old-fashioned sweet shop packed full of confectionery has opened its doors at the station, which featured in the classic film Brief Encounter.

Humbugs owner Rod Savage said customers would feel they had stepped back in time when they entered the sweet shop, based on his successful outlet at Marketgate in Lancaster.

The Carnforth shop's shelves are packed with more than 400 jars of sweets and 1,600 different lines of confectionery, including many that are hard to find elsewhere.

From aniseed balls, butter brazils and Grays tea cakes, to chocolate Turkish delight, sherbets and rhubarb and custard, the list of taste bud-tickling treats on sale is endless.

Mr Savage said he sourced sweets from all over the world, including liquorice from Italy as well as products from the US, Germany and New Zealand. Kendal mint cake is also very popular with tourists, and Mr Savage said he was keen to stock more sweets from local manufacturers.

He opened the Lancaster shop, which employs five staff, some 18 months ago and said he jumped at the chance to open a second outlet at Carnforth, which has created another job. He said Carnforth station had been neglected for many years, but had now been restored thanks to local people's efforts.

"I think that by opening our shop, it will lift the station's profile and give us a healthy trade as well," he said.

The family business has also sold sweets to all corners of the world via its website (www.humbugs-chocolates.co.uk). "We have only been web trading for four months and it's still in its infancy, but the feedback we've got is brilliant. We have sent sweets to the US, New Zealand and Africa."