AS WE enter 2021, with no sign of the coronavirus subsiding and with movement and travel restricted due to further lockdowns, the future of heritage railways and museums is a growing concern.
In this third and more stringent lockdown than before, all heritage lines are closed – and many would have been over the winter, even without the pandemic. But that doesn’t lessen the bills they face – council tax, utilities, insurance, infrastructure maintenance and loan repayments – all of which need to be paid.
Grants to railways, and not all railways qualify, have been unequal depending whether that railway is in Wales or England. Welsh grants were a maximum of £150,000 but some English lines have received more that 10 times that.
With so many interruptions to heritage operations, and would-be visitors heeding advice to stay at home, the big unknown is when these attractions might reopen. One railway general manager told me they were planning for a May reopening, but because of online training and mentoring could reopen sooner – if it is permitted.