All I want for Christmas…
HERE WE go again. If there is any genuine reason for optimism as England is plunged into a second lockdown, it is that railway preservation has already proved that it can endure such crises. Indeed, from the darkness of the spring, there have been many things to be cheerful about. Just one recent example is that the Isle of Wight Steam Railway recorded its most successful September ever. Indeed, general manager Steve Backhouse tells us that the October half-term “could have been sold twice over!”
Inevitably, however, concern is multiplied by what else might occur. For while there could certainly be worse timing for a unilateral shutdown than November – a month that traditionally features lower levels of steam – the painful prospect of lockdown being extended beyond its nominal December 2 deadline is especially worrying. Railways have pinned so many of their hopes on Christmas trains in order to make up for so much already lost in 2020. Indeed, potential earnings from the first weekend Santa Specials have already been lost where bookings cannot be rescheduled.
To that end, recent lottery and government grants have provided a big boost for some, yet not all. And those will be especially important, as raising funds through donations becomes a bigger challenge for an increasingly fatigued and cash-strapped population.
The unpredictable trajectory of coronavirus – and the government decisions it engenders – makes it impossible to plan even just a few weeks ahead with any degree of confidence. There could be a hefty price to pay for lost revenue resulting from any cancelled trains, compounded by unavoidable overhead costs, such as the buying-in of children's presents, which cannot be recouped at unfairly short notice.
If, as we all hope, restrictions are eased on December 2, then there will be a fighting chance. That’s subject, of course, to whatever subsquent devolved or local measures may be put in place, as the Great Little Trains of Wales will testify, having surrendered the October half-term to the ‘Firebreak’.
Imaginative thinking is going to be essentialÉ Santa by steam in January, anyone?
Encouragingly, the period between lockdowns has highlighted exactly how much demand there is for the steam railway experience, in the face of what might have appeared to be inhibiting restrictions. Passengers have accepted the contraints with great stoicism, in order to support enterprises that are doing their level best to keep the show on the road. The equally stoic manner in which volunteers and staff have stood up to that challenge will never be forgotten.
THE PAINFUL PROSPECT OF LOCKDOWN BEING EXTENDED IS ESPECIALLY WORRYING