TACTICS to tempt more passengers on to the threatened Lakes Line have been revealed by the company that operates the trains from Oxenholme to Windermere, reports Andy Bloxham.

In November, the Government's Strategic Rail Authority released a report called the Community Rail Development Strategy, which called on branch lines to double their fare income over the next five years by cutting costs and increasing revenue.

The SRA said it could not rule out closures if the routes, including the Lakes Line and the line from Barrow to Carlisle, did not prove their financial viability.

However, TransPennine Express, which runs trains on the Lakes Line, has come forward with a set of improvements it hopes will guarantee the financial success of the line, and therefore its future.

Paul Jackson, TPE's station manager for Cumbria, set out the improvements in the pipeline for the Lakes Line: l New trains in 2006, with a first class section.

l Closed circuit television at every station, if a pilot scheme at Kendal is successful.

l Customer information screens linked to bus and possibly ferry timetables.

l Discounted bike hire for onward travel.

l New signs for every station.

Mr Jackson said he was determined to crack down on station vandalism by using CCTV. Windermere station will also be extensively refurbished in March or April this year, which will provide a larger waiting area and a retail space that could be used as a shop or even a small art gallery.

Mr Jackson said the line from Manchester airport through to Windermere was a "route to the heart of the Lakes" and more tourists than were currently using the link could be persuaded to do so in future.

Further in the future, Mr Jackson said it was possible a passing loop could be built to allow two trains on the line at once, potentially doubling passenger numbers.

Dick Smith, assistant secretary of the Lakes Line User Group, which lobbies for improvements, said this was the Rolls Royce' of his wish list for the line. He said the best place for such a loop, where a single line splits into two before rejoining, would be Staveley or Burneside, although it remained only a long-term possibility.

To report vandalism at a station, call British Transport Police on 0800-405040.

A meet the managers' session with TPE will take place at Kendal station on February 21, from 4.30pm to 5.30pm.