Llanfair line to remain closed

The suspension of steam-hauled passenger trains on the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway (W&LLR) is to continue until at least June 5.

Following a promised review, W&LLR General Manager, Charles Spencer, said that despite the great ‘stay at home’ efforts by local communities, the Coronavirus is still very much with us in the Welshpool area.

“For the safety of our visitors, we agree with the Welsh Government shutdown precautions and believe that we should not be operating trains at present,” Charles added. “Like the government, we’ll review the situation again at the beginning of June.”

While most of the W&LLR’s few paid staff are on furlough, the safety of the many volunteers the line relies on remains equally important.

Only essential maintenance and safety work, together with security surveillance, is taking place on site at present, and always with appropriate distancing provisions, the line said.

This means that the operation of works trains is necessary, so it remains important that the public do not trespass on the railway line during the closure; all the station facilities remain closed.

The railway charity’s finances are significantly affected by the lack of visitor revenue, and all involved with the W&LLR have been delighted by the response to the ‘Tracks to Recovery’ appeal launched to try and alleviate some of the losses.

Donations to the appeal have passed £40,000 this week, which volunteer and Trustee Oliver Edwards described as “a fantastic result – a great contribution towards covering our unavoidable expenses for the first couple of months of the shutdown and protecting our reserves to prepare for our reopening, which we hope will be soon”.

Two other fundraising projects have been launched this week. A special souvenir package featuring visiting Austrian locomotive ‘Zillertal’ is available through the railway’s online shop, as is a special book of historic W&LLR photographs produced by well-known rail publisher Mainline & Maritime.

Links to both are available here and every sale will produce a donation to the appeal.

You can donate to the appeal here.

PICTURE (Andrew Charman, W&LLR): General manager Charles Spencer and all at the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway want to welcome visitors back to ride the line – but only when it is safe to do so.