So you want to open a heritage railway?
The Heritage Railway Association is here to support the sector, we don’t want to put off anyone who is seriously considering an extension of a heritage railway, or even creating a new one. But make no mistake, it’s not an easy task.
We’ve pulled together a few essential facts, figures, and directions to some key documents, that you’ll need to consider at the very outset. We highly recommend that you take the time to digest and understand all of them before starting any publicity, fundraising, or purchasing rolling stock.
Regulation
Heritage railways and tramways operating in England, Scotland and Wales on a gauge of more than 15in are regulated by the Office of Rail and Road. The only exception are funicular railways, which are regulated by the Health and Safety Executive’s Mines Inspectorate. All heritage railways are required to have a full Safety Management System in place.
To understand what compliance with Office of Rail and Road regulations looks like, we recommend thoroughly digesting this document produced by the ORR
If you're in Northern Ireland, then the Department for Infrastructure is the equivalent body in most cases.
Location
When railways were closed and removed by British Railways, most of the land was sold off piecemeal. There is no central repository for former railway land. Local authorities did take over some trackbed, but lots ended up with private landowners. The likelihood is that any sizeable scheme would need to make contact and negotiate with a mosaic of differing landowners.
Where former railway formations cross footpaths, roads or bridges, liaison with local authorities will be required. Where bridges cross water courses, it's also likely that the Environment Agency will need to be consulted before repairs or reinstatment of a railway can be carried out.
Any residual sites that have not been sold to date are now under the ownership of Historical Railways Estate, part of National Highways.
Sales are rare, but are handled via the Government Property Finder website.
Permission
The construction of any new railway or extension is likely to require several permissions from local authorities and central government. Most require a Transport and Works Act Order. A Transport and Works Act Order replaces the previous Light Railway Order arrangements, which no longer exist.
Heritage Railway Association membership includes access to Guidance Notes that will be of assistance in this area.
The process required to obtain a Transport and Works Act Order can be substantial and specialist legal advice will almost certainly be required.
Construction
If you believe you can comply with the regulatory requirements and acquire a site, you need to be aware of the costs involved in reinstating a railway. Costs can vary significantly but, purely as starting point, think in terms of a cost per quarter mile of at least £100, 000 to £150, 000 just to cover reclamation of the formation, drainage, ballast, sleepers, rail and fixings.
To give just two 'average' cost examples - for a typical standard gauge railway:
- A quarter of a mile of used railway sleepers suitable for further use will cost in the region of £30,000
- A quarter of mile of ballast will cost in the region of £22,000.
On top of that you will need rails, rail fixings, fishplates, fishplate bolts, plus all of the tools and equipment needed to lay the track. In addition, there may well be significant other costs for rebuilding or re-instating embankments, cuttings and, structures such as bridges and culverts; signalling, crossings, stations and so on
Rolling stock
A small steam tank locomotive in good condition, with a boiler ticket can cost a six figure sum, if one is currently for sale. Restoring a steam locomotive that has been out of service will normally cost a lot more - £250,000 plus is commonplace and we’re aware of locomotive restorations that have cost several million pounds.
Diesel locomotives or multiple units are normally slightly cheaper to purchase, but are still likely to require substantial expenditure to make them ready for use and can degrade quickly if not operated regularly.
Used passenger carriages fit for traffic will cost tens-of-thousands of pounds each.
On top of this, you will need to consider costs of any buildings that need to be erected, stations that need to be built or even bridges that need to be constructed. Each will be different, but all will require substantial outgoings.
Ongoing costs
Running even a small heritage railway is not cheap.
A small steam locomotive will easily use a ton of coal or more a day. Larger ones can burn 10 tons. Each ton of coal will cost in the region of £250-£350 depending on the coal used and your distance from the merchant or importer.
On average, maintaining a mile of heritage railway track is estimated to cost around £16,000 per year.
Steam locomotives require a thorough annual inspection once every 14 months in the presence of a qualified boiler inspector. A newly overhauled steam locomotive can be permitted to operate for a 10-year period before a full overhaul is again required over and above the regular inspections. Such an overhaul can routinely stretch beyond £100,000 in costs.
Heritage Railway Association members have access to guidance notes with more detail on issues such as locomotive overhaul and maintenance.
Funding
Finding funding for new heritage railway projects is incredibly difficult. Most major funders, including the National Lottery Heritage Fund do not fund projects like a new heritage railway. Local authorities and other public bodies are also very unlikely to contribute financially. They may fund individual elements of a wider scheme, but will ordinarily want to see evidence of a track record of delivery before committing substantial funds.
All funders have detailed criteria that they expect projects to deliver against for any funding. Before making any assumptions about where funds for your project could come from, it is recommended to familiarise yourself with the criteria required by potential funders.
Public appeals for funding can be successful, but it is important to recognise that competition for public giving is strong. Even well-established heritage railways can take decades to raise funds for bigger projects. Don’t automatically assume that a new proposal to reopen a railway will generate large amounts of public giving in a challenging economic climate.
Next steps
Having reviewed the details and links above, if you believe that your proposed scheme is viable and would welcome further guidance then please do get in touch with us to discuss membership of the Heritage Railway Association and how we can help. Please contact our Membership and Business Development Manager Jo Silsbury here.
Find out more about Heritage Railway Association membership.
