A SURVEY has revealed the Lakes Line between Oxenholme and Windermere is vital for commuters, schoolchildren and shoppers.
A group of Liberal Democrat county and district councillors conducted what was the second survey on the line in recent months and concluded it was "incredibly valuable".
Cumbria county councillor Les Lishman said: "It would be a huge loss to our community if the Line was to be threatened with closure."
The first survey was a comprehensive analysis of local train use by the Lakes Line Rail User Group, which lobbies for improvements on the branch line.
The RUG survey found use of the line had increased 30 per cent in two years.
Both surveys were completed after the Strategic Rail Authority, the Government's train watchdog, launched a review that did not rule out closing smaller routes including the Lakes line.
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