CAR parking charges at Oxenholme train station are putting people off using the Lakes Line, according to a former train user.

Ex-museum education officer John Hill, 68, of Holme, said he regularly used to travel the line from Oxenholme to Windermere as a base for fell walking but the parking charges deterred him.

He said that, as a pensioner, he paid just over two pounds for his return ticket to Windermere but was charged £5 to park his car.

He said: "They are putting obstacles in the way (of using the Lakes Line). I've always thought it was a bit of a cheek to charge £5. It certainly stops a few of us from Holme from using the line."

However, a survey by the Lakes Line Rail User Group has found passenger numbers had soared by 30 per cent in the last two years.

Dick Smith, of the LLRUG, said the rise saw almost double the number of children using the train to get to school.

He said: "It is good to see the travellers of the future getting the railway habit young."

The volunteer surveyors, who gave over 100 hours of their time to the task, found not only schoolchildren but commuters, shoppers and long distance travellers used the line.

However, the survey found delays on the West Coast Main Line, which links with the branch line at Oxenholme, made people think twice before using the train.

Oxenholme station is operated by Virgin Trains and company spokesman Dave Ewart said the £5 rate for a day's parking was a "commercially-viable rate", which was imposed nationally.

He added the fee went towards providing Oxenholme's facilities of: closed circuit television; a good level of lighting; good surfacing; and good marking out of parking spaces.

He acknowledged the car park was not only for those people using trains.

Mr Ewart said Virgin Trains recognised the value of lines such as that from Windermere to Oxenholme for providing a feeder into the services operated by the company, which runs trains between Glasgow and London.

Malcolm Thompson, of the Lakes Line Rail User Group, said the issue of parking charges had been raised before and the idea of a discount for train users discussed without support from local councils.

He added: "I think the rate is rather high but parking in towns can be quite expensive for a whole day."