ANGER has erupted at the Government for 'not mentioning Cumbria' in its 162-page plan for rail in the north.

This comes after Tim Farron said it was 'gobsmacking' that the county has been excluded from the integrated rail plan for the North and the Midlands.

And MP for Barrow and Furness, Simon Fell, expressed scepticism at the plans and said ‘the proof of this will be in the pudding’.

Reaction on social media erupted after residents agreed with the MPs statements.

Steve Wadds said: "Hate to say it to an opponent but yes, Mr Fell is spot on. More emphasis on better local services and less on getting to Birmingham in enough time."

Boris Johnson has been accused of a 'betrayal' of the North and Midlands with the scaled-back plans for rail investment in the region.

There was anger in the Commons as Transport Secretary Grant Shapps confirmed that the eastern leg of HS2 was being scrapped while the planned Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) was being curtailed.

On rail development, Barbara Broadhead said: "I bet HS2 never gets any further than Birmingham anyway. It was a bad idea from the start. The state of the current rail system dares back to Margaret Thatcher."

Grumpy old biker said that electrification of the Furness, Cumbria Coast and Windermere lines should be a priority, adding: "If you are going to get people out of their cars, good local services is the only way.

"Not happened since the Beeching axe was swung in this neck of the woods."

Rene Artois takes aim at the current Government, they said: "As usual the Government forget there is life north of the M62 corridor, perhaps after ruining the hospitality sector we don't need trains?

"The coastal line is a complete mess and hasn't been upgraded in donkey's years. I worked as part of the engineering crew in the '70s and It doesn't appear to be any better than it was 50 yr ago. The Windermere line runs when it feels like it and as for a decent connection to the mainline from West Cumbria forget about it."