NEWS

3rd June 2025

Enhanced connectivity as new rail service between Stirling and London is announced

Stirling Council has welcomed the announcement that Lumo, part of First Group, will run four trains a day between Stirling and London from 2026 – stopping at 10 Scottish and English stations along the way.

 

The new Lumo service will call at Larbert, Greenfaulds (serving Cumbernauld), Whifflet (serving Coatbridge), Motherwell and Lockerbie en route to England – where it will also call at Carlisle, Preston, Crewe, Nuneaton and Milton Keynes Central before arriving in London.

 

The new open access service will compete with Avanti West Coast as well as other operators including TransPennine Express and LNER.

 

In 2024 First Group acquired Grand Union WCML which included track access rights granted by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to run open access rail services from London Euston to Stirling.

 

The current track access agreement runs until 2030 and includes four return services a day (three on Sundays) and an additional, fifth daily return service between Preston and London, seven days a week. Services are currently expected to commence mid 2026 following the delivery of the trains and staff training.

 

Stirling already has one of Scotland’s busiest railway stations and these new services announced by Lumo should bring economic benefits to Stirling, which is forecast to have the fastest-growing economy in Scotland over the next three years.