If we do… What will you do?

It had never really occurred to me before, but when they said it, it was just so obvious! “The strength in heritage railways is that they exist because we want them to.” And we do. We really do want them to exist.

As businesses, steam railways are pretty marginal. So, right now, with everything Covid-19 has thrown at them, that ‘want’ will make all the difference.

Three months ago, one of the toughest periods ever faced by heritage rail began. By the third weekend of March, as every plan for the 2020 season was either suspended or binned, preserved lines faced zero income.

Railways were down – massively down. But they’re not out! The early introduction of the Government’s furloughing scheme gave businesses a lifeline, but it was immediately obvious that, with over eight million people being paid by the Government, this could not go on indefinitely.

A lot of my time is spent lobbying government on the key needs of preserved railways. Currently, this also means responding to numerous consultations and requests for information, as well as briefing our member railways on the mass of often conflicting information, guidance and directives coming out of government and elsewhere.

As part of this, I often find myself listening to the daily news briefing. And there it was: on May 11, the Government announced its Recovery Strategy. A chink of light. The possibility of unlocking tourism and leisure from July 4.

But it’s the end of June now. What’s happening? Reopening plans are being prepared by several steam railways. There are lots of ideas and advice being shared to develop ways to open safely. But it’s still fraught with difficulties.

Social distancing – any social distancing – and the array of health protection requirements presents massive challenges.

How do you socially distance on a locomotive footplate or in a Mk 1 carriage? And as for narrow gauge stock which isn’t even two metres wide, how can that be managed?

There are new cleaning routines and visitor flows around stations and on platforms to be considered. And there’s our regulator. While the Office of Rail and Road is sympathetic to the circumstances every railway finds itself in, it still, quite rightly, demands safe and efficient operations.

I can assure you, every steam railway planning to open this summer is thinking carefully about how it can be done in ways that help the public, staff and volunteers feel confident and safe. So when we do get steaming again… what will you do? This is your passion, your interest, your hobby. Supporters of railways have already done so much in responding to appeals. But if a heritage railway was already a marginal business… my goodness, it’s even more so now. While planning to reopen, railway managers are also having to work out if it’ll be worth it. No railway can afford to open if all it does is run at a loss and makes its already dire financial position worse.

So it’s likely that many railways will keep some staff furloughed and ask more of volunteers. There will be reduced timetables and possibly fewer station stops. Some may not run the full length of their lines.

As much as they want to run trains, they must make sure it stacks up financially.

And when the furlough scheme ends in October, adding yet more cost, many railways will head into winter with even bigger losses.

So, please, get out there and visit. Take your family with you. Visit several railways. Buy tickets – and add a donation. Buy a membership. Don’t take your own food and drink. Use their restaurants and takeaway kiosks. Buy something from the shop. Stick your loose change – or more – in the donation boxes.

And if safety measures take a bit of getting used to, please just look at the efforts being made to give visitors the best possible experience.

Make this a team effort and there’s room for optimism… because steam railways exist because we want them to exist. That’s where their resilience lies and, knowing that, it boosts everyone’s confidence to get through this.