After the lockdown, so many unknowns
WELCOME to the May issue of The Railway Magazine. What a strange month it has been. Despite the coronavirus ‘lockdown’, many of our readers have still been able to provide images and observations of trains in their locality as a result of a carefully timed exercise by walking or cycling. Thank you for this.
Some good things to report: on a personal level, I have used my spare time taking walks and undertaking DIY jobs planned for the summer, ready to get out and travel by rail when more freedom is allowed. In wider news, some model railway shops have – not surprisingly – done strong mail order business!
However, what happens post-lockdown is very much an unknown quantity; the cue could come from other countries.
The vast reduction of rail services provided an unexpected opportunity to place in store units and carriages which had short-term dispensations from disability regulations.
Gone are the Class 90s and Mk3s on the Norwich route; sadly, no farewell train. ‘Pacers’ have been stored, many unlikely to run in passenger service again, and further inroads into scrapping surplus Mk3 HST carriages, in store for a year, has begun, with train operators having sufficient new and refurbished trains as replacements.
Whenever rail services begin to ramp up, it will all look and feel rather different.
The Government is yet to outline how, or indeed if, it will remove the current emergency measures from train operators. With the Williams Review eagerly awaited, could it be move to concessions instead? No one knows.
What has been great to see is the adherence to ‘key workers’-only travelling, and we owe a big thanks to those who have kept the trains running, particularly passenger drivers and guards, the freight train drivers moving thousands of tonnes of food around the country, platform staff, signalling and control staff, right down to cleaning teams, who have undertaken deeper cleaning and disinfecting of carriages during the coronavirus outbreak.
Network Rail teams have been busy, taking advantage of quieter levels of traffic to undertake repairs and maintenance.
Overall, the industry response has been brilliant. The big unknown question is whether the railways will be as busy as they were before, especially as home working isn’t suitable for everyone.
Only time will tell what the level of severity has been on business because of Covid-19.
Heritage and railtour concerns
Without doubt, the biggest area of concern during this pandemic is the long-term impact on heritage railways and railtour operators.
Starved of income at a time their season was about to begin, some will be lucky to get three or four months’ business this year.
Many lines have furloughed paid staff; some were in financial trouble before the lockdown, and for them, survival has become a fight.
Several have indicated they hope to restart around July (or before, if Government permits) and run right though to the ‘Santa’ special season with no break, trying to recoup some of the lost income. However, heritage lines have faced difficult times before, the public has supported them, and many will emerge leaner and fitter.
RM readers and the public have responded magnificently to the 50 or so appeals railways are running by providing generous donations, buying virtual tickets and/or merchandise from the railway shop. The Severn Valley Railway reported donations of £565,000 as we closed for press. That is truly amazing, and other lines have been equally well supported. Details of railways with on-going appeals appears on p56. Please try and support them.
With the charter train market in tatters too and so many tours cancelled, the question of what happens if social distancing remains in force for an extended period arises.
As someone who has been involved with several charity railtours, I know the costs of running a train, and the break even point is high, therefore needing a loading of sometimes 85% or above to be profitable. If social distancing remains in force, how can any tours run? I’d like to think everything will return to as near ‘normal’, but things may be so very different in six or 12 months time. Hopefully, not radically different.
Finally, please consider taking a subscription to The RM. With movements still restricted, your copy, by post, will be guaranteed plus you will save money. See p48 for the current offers.
Until next month, stay safe.
CHRIS MILNER, Editor