The “Let’s go car free” scheme has left the UK Bus Awards with the ‘Marketing Campaign of the Year’ award.

Established by Avanti West Coast, Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire, and the Cumbria Tourism board, the campaign received accolades from the judges for its environmentally friendly approach, which aligns with Cumbria Tourism’s goals to boost sustainable visitor numbers in the area.

The scheme which ran from September 2023 to November 2024, championed cost-effective and eco-friendly public transportation throughout Cumbria.

It marketed Cumbria as an attractive destination while urging visitors to opt for a more sustainable journey by not using their cars.

In a joint effort by these three organizations, the town of Keswick in Cumbria was added to railway journey planners, this has enabled visitors to travel smoothly using connecting train and bus services with a single integrated ticket, which has helped the town prosper seeing an increase in tourists over the summer.

The campaign has successfully challenged the notion that the region is difficult to access by rail or bus, a misconception which was identified in Cumbria Tourism’s independent research from 2022 – 2023.

The scheme has proven the convenience of rail travel and the connection with local bus networks throughout the area, while the prospect of reintroducing the scheme in 2025 is very much on the table as Avanti West Coast is in discussions with Stagecoach Cumbria & Lancashire to assess the viability of reintroducing the scheme.

Cumbria’s ‘Connecting Penrith’ project is also a key player in promoting greener integrated public transport across Cumbria. The ‘Marketing Campaign of the Year’ award won for this particular scheme will also benefit the ‘Connecting Penrith’ project as their goals align with this scheme.

“This campaign had a huge positive impact for sustainable tourism to Cumbria and it is fantastic to see it recognised at the UK Bus Awards.

Public transport plays such an important role in driving tourism growth across the regions we serve, so being able to come together with Stagecoach and Cumbria Tourism to attract new visitors to the Lake District has created a fantastic example of what collaborative working can achieve.”

Avanti West Coast’s Head of Commercial Partnerships, Richard Wareing

“Let’s Go Car Free has shown that working in partnership with other businesses can prove to be particularly fruitful.  Encouraging visitors to travel to and around the county in a more sustainable way and ease traffic on our roads is a key ambition of our Destination Marketing Plan.  Avanti West Coast and Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire have helped us show just how easy and cost effective it is to enjoy Cumbria without a car.

Earlier this year the partnership took a step further as Avanti announced a new virtual train station at Keswick, effortlessly linking both companies to provide a seamless ticketing service for passengers to book tickets that took them directly to Keswick via Penrith.”

Cumbria Tourism’s Managing Director, Gill Haigh