 The new company had finally won its battle for a through line, though it had lost the race for primacy; the Caledonian Railway had a much shorter route to Glasgow and Edinburgh, and the North British Railway had been running through trains from Edinburgh to London on the east coast route via Berwick-upon-Tweed for two years.On 26 June 1873 a line was opened from Barrhead to Kilmarnock, shortening the Glasgow to Kilmarnock run, and therefore the Glasgow to Carlisle run, considerably.The new company needed an English partner to make a viable service to London, and eventually it found one, when the Midland Railway built its line to Carlisle, opening in 1875/6.