In a second announcement for South Cumbria, the Department for Transport has promised £13m for a new stretch of the A595 to bypass a notorious bottleneck.

Image source, Google

The improvements would see a new stretch of road built to replace the section through Dove Farm, at Grizebeck, addressing a pinch point that's caused problems for years.

Ministers say it will make journeys faster and safer, with the upgrade also including new crossing for farm vehicles and cyclists.

Work should start in 2022.

Barrow will be one of the first towns in the country to benefit, to the tune of £25m, from the government's Towns Fund.

Image source, Google

The town at the end of the Furness peninsula is one of the first seven communities to have a funding offer made as part of the £3.6 billion Government scheme

The money will pay for measures aiming to make it a more attractive place for young people to live and work, with new housing and a learning quarter with a university campus.

The borough council leader Ann Thomson hopes this will also offer something to the town's young people, whether or not they want to work at the main employer, the BAE shipyard.

There are wide variations in the levels of coronavirus infection in Cumbria, according to the director of public health, Colin Cox.

Figures up to the end of last week show the rate of new infections ranging from 89 per 100,000 people in Allerdale to 262.5 in Barrow, with the England average at 200, and Cumbria's average at 170.

Most of the county is under tier one - medium alert, apart from Barrow, at tier two - high alert.

Dr Cox says the rate of infection in Barrow dropped very slightly last week, suggesting the higher restrictions may be working, but it's still increasing elsewhere and he is now worried about Carlisle.

John Myatt has braved the winds and rain the rain and marched on to complete his 91-mile walk along the length of Hadrian's Wall in a pair of swimming trunks and a Roman helmet.

He set off from Wallsend on Friday morning and arrived at Bowness-on-Solway yesterday evening, raising money for the charity Rugby for Heroes.

The 48-year-old is no stranger to cold temperatures having previously swam the Channel and taken part in the International Ice Swimming Championships in Russia.

BBC Weather

Rain will spread in from the southwest this morning under cloudy, grey skies.

This will move through into the afternoon keeping things dull and wet.

Temperatures reaching 9C (48F).

This evening it'll turn drier with perhaps a few scattered showers.

And you can check the latest BBC Weather where you live, here

BBC Weather

An isolated shower and patchy cloud will linger for a time this evening, and may persist in some regions.

Where skies clear, it will feel quite chilly as winds will ease overnight, with lowest temperatures down to 4C to 7C (39F to 45F).

The Met Office has posted a yellow warning of heavy rain , externalfor later this week, saying up to 80mm (3in) could fall on higher ground between noon on Thursday and the end of Friday.

And you can always find the latest, hour-by-hour, BBC weather forecast for where you are, by typing in your location or postcode here.

BBC Cumbria Sport

Cumbria's James Knox (pictured) finished 14th in cycling's Giro d'Italia, as fellow Briton Tao Geoghegan Hart became only the second British man to win the Italian tour.

Image source, Getty Images

Martin Lewes
Reporter

A number of organisations and businesses around Cumbria are offering meals for children who would normally have free school lunches.

Image source, Gatehouse Cafe

Some are cafes, like the Gatehouse in Carlisle (above), where owner Val Armstrong's efforts were backed up by Jojo Scott and Faye Roberts from the Healthy Living Fitness Kitchen, (below), who made up 200 meals.

Image source, Gatehouse Cafe

Other cafes providing meals around Cumbria included Joey's Cafe in Kendal, the Sunnyhill in Whitehaven and Berry's Tearoom in Brampton, where the owner, Lesley Berry, says she shouldn't have to do it, but she is determined to help.

Work is under way to improve passenger and freight journeys over the Ribblehead viaduct.

The landmark structure, just over the border from Cumbria in North Yorkshire, carries the Settle-Carlisle railway.

Image source, Network Rail

The 144-year-old viaduct will have its drainage improved and brickwork restored between now and February 2021, including:

• brickwork repairs
• removal of vegetation and repairing the damage caused by plants and weeds
• upgrades to drainage across the viaduct’s 24 arches
• repainting metal and pipework

Engineers are installing scaffolding to provide a safe platform to carry out repairs to the 400m structure.

No major disruption is expected for passengers using the Settle-Carlisle line during the viaduct's 2020 maintenance.

Image source, Network Rail

BBC Weather Watchers

After a very wet morning in Cumbria, the sun came out behind the showers, and in Flookburgh Louise Farrington saw it create three rainbows.

Image source, Louise Farrington

Louise was kind enough to send the picture to our colleagues at Salford, but you can also email them or tweet them, external directly to us.

Cumbria's charities, councils and health services have put together a new help package, external which they say can put people in touch with problems stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.

A single webpage is intended to put people in touch with help close to their home, whether they need support because they are in quarantine and cannot leave home, feeling mental strain or need help with problems like alcohol.

Image source, Cumbria County Council

Councillor Deborah Earl, Cabinet Member for Public Health and Communities, said people "might feel overwhelmed, scared or find yourself in a position you have never experienced before."

And Carolyn Otley, Chair of Cumbria’s Local Community Resilience Group, said the financial pressures on some people were increasing: “We want people to know there is help available, it’s ok to look for that help and it’s ok to talk to a friend or family member or to someone else about how you are feeling."

• The services and contacts are also available by telephone during office hours on 0800 783 1966.

There has been a sharp increase in the number of people infected with Covid-19 in Carlisle, according to figures analysed by the BBC.

The statistics to last Friday show 244 new cases in the city, compared with 158 the previous week.

The number of new cases in Barrow has dropped slightly, but it still has the highest rate of infection in Cumbria, at 262 per 100,000 population, and both Carlisle and Eden are now above 200 cases per 100,000 population.

BBC Newcastle
BBC Radio Newcastle

A man who has been walking the length of Hadrian's Wall in just a pair of Speedos, walking boots and a Roman helmet has given us an update on his gruelling journey.

John Myatt set off from Wallsend on Friday morning, bound for Cumbria, to raise money for a charity close to his heart - Rugby for Heroes.

The 48-year-old is hoping to finish his challenge today, but says it hasn't been easy, with obstacles including heavy rain and taking a wrong turn which delayed him by two hours on Friday.