WSR GIVES AUTOCOACH NOTICE TO LEAVE AS SDRT CHALLENGES EVICTION
5542 group told to relocate autotrailer No. 169, while Washford’s S&D group responds to WSR plc.
WE HAVE HAD SEVERAL OFFERS OF NEW HOMES NIGEL DAVIES, DIRECTOR, SDRT
The West Somerset Railway has given notice to Locomotive 5542 Ltd to move its GWR autocoach No. 169 off the railway.
The group, which also owns ‘4575’ 2-6-2T No. 5542 at the South Devon Railway, has been restoring the 1929-built Collett autotrailer in the WSR’s Williton workshop since 2005. However, with this building in the process of being transferred from the WSR Association to the WSR plc, the latter organisation has given notice for the vehicle to leave – although negotiations are taking place for it to remain.
The board of directors of Locomotive 5542 Limited stated that it is “currently in discussion with the board of the WSR plc regarding the future storage and restoration of the carriage. No further comment will be made until these discussions are completed and the outcome is known to us.”
A WSR press spokesman explained that additional space is needed at Williton, and that the autocoach had been occupying the site rent-free.
He said that the plc “needs to rationalise its engineering resources for the benefit of the railway – Sherrings Yard [an area of land adjacent to the workshop, which the association leased in 2008] is costing an arm and a leg.
“It’s no secret that things need to change, and we have to think about where the money is going out of the door.”
The news follows the separate 12-month notice that the plc served on the S&D Trust in February, ordering the latter organisation to quit Washford station and yard by February 10 next year (SR503).
Writing in the latest issue of its house magazine Pines Express, trust chairman Ian Young said: “The trust has challenged this notice under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. The WSR’s stated reason is that it requires the land at Washford for its own use. Whether this is true or not is open to much speculation. The fact that no discussion took place before the serving of the notice speaks volumes.
“Since the notice to quit was received, other reasons have been given by the WSR for this decision, not the least of which is the trust’s declining to contribute money towards the WSR’s recovery plan, as has become clear in press statements and board news bulletins. I cannot emphasise enough that the trust’s obligations, under charity law, include an inalienable responsibility to use its funds only for the furtherance of its charitable constitutional objectives. Legally, this specifically precludes providing funds to another organisation, no matter how worthy the cause. However, we are prepared to support the WSR in other ways and, indeed, this has always been the case. As before, we are open to discussion on a more positive approach which benefits both parties.
“What is clear is that the present management of WSR plc has no regard for respecting the position we have adopted and is taking an approach to its relationships which ignores the heritage principles upon which our sector is based.”
The WSR’s spokesman has expanded further on the subject of the trust’s contributions to WSR funds, saying that a suggestion was put forward for the trust to launch a £10,000 appeal to replace the corroded tender tank of its S&D ‘7F’ 2-8-0 No. 53808: “This would then have saved the WSR from having to raise the funds as part of the [separate] ‘7F’ hire agreement and so contributed to the WSR’s coffers in effect, but without compromising its charitable objectives as it would be investing in its own loco. I’m told it refused to do this.
“We should also mention that the two boards met last July and a lease liaison meeting took place in January this year, and around 30 hours of time has been spent in meetings with them, so they cannot claim it was a bolt from the blue!
“Also, requests were made to it last September to open up more frequently than it has done in the past (which is infrequent) in exchange for a bigger profile on both the plc website and timetable leaflet which were, apparently, ignored.”
Responding to these statements, Ian Young said of the tender appeal: “Nothing could be further from the truth. At two meetings with the WSR this was discussed and the SDRT said it would give it consideration. No timescales were agreed or discussed and no refusal was made.”
Of the meetings, he said: “These took place in good faith and, apart from the difficulties regarding direct funding, the two organisations discussed, as recently as January, competencies and methods of operating at Washford. The WSR has not responded to the trust’s
summary of the meeting which took place at Washford on January 11 2020.”
Finally, SDRT director Nigel Davies described the statement regarding opening times as: “Totally untrue. Washford station was open 100% of the days the WSR was running trains through Washford in 2019. Along with other stations along the line we do not open when trains are not running because of insignificant footfall.”
Since the news broke of the notice to quit, said Mr Davies: “We have had several offers of new homes which we are following up, as well as the possibility of staying on the WSR.
“The biggest problem in many cases is space. We have a large collection of stock and locomotives, a well-stocked museum, a large restoration shed with machinery and a large amount of track, including points.”