Improvements worth £400,000 will be carried out at Darwen railway station in the next 12 months. After almost three years of talks about enhancements, Blackburn with Darwen Council has secured £200,000 ‘matched’ funding from Network Rail’s National Station Improvement Programme (NSIP). The changes will focus on improved security, better passenger shelters and information, and the installation of self serve ticket machines.

Sunnyhurst councillor Dave Smith hailed the news as “excellent” for the town. He said: “The facilities are very poor at the moment, with little maintenance carried out. The shelters are inadequate and there is quite a lot of vandalism. You get people throwing things on the line and urinating in the shelters. Now, after lobbying for some time, there are going to be big improvements. Hopefully the improved CCTV will discourage people from hanging around and the ticket machines will stop people travelling for free.”

Since the late 1980s, Darwen station has been unmanned, meaning no facility for buying pre-boarding tickets or access to up-to-the-minute rail information. Now, four customer information screens will be installed as well as a new public announcement system. The barrel-roofed shelters will be removed and two new larger waiting shelters, including seating and lighting, installed. Handrails and anti-slip devices will be installed on steps and disabled access ramps. There will also be an overhaul of the landscaped area including the replanting of shrubs in the station planters.