Steam & Heritage
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HERITAGE Railway Association (HRA) chief executive Steve Oates has openly described the current situation facing preserved railways as a"very confused picture" as the organisation prepares to issue reopening guidance for life post-lockdown.
Following the release of the Government's Covid-19 Recovery Strategy paper on May 11, the
HRA is actively trying to assimilate the wealth of documentation coming out of Westminster in order to prepare practical information to help railways make informed decisions on how and when to reopen.
Recovery
Mr Oates and the HRA believe that heritage lines fall under
Step 3ofthe Recovery Strategy, which states: 'The ambition at this step is to open at least some of the remaining businesses and premises that have been required to close, including personal care (such as hairdressers and beauty salons) hospitality (such as food service providers, pubs and accommodation), public places (such as places of worship) and leisure facilities (like cinemas).
The Government's current planning assumption is that this step will be no earlier than July 4, subject to a number of caveats.
''The thrust ofwhat is coming out of Government, and its demeanour and attitude has changed;' Mr Oates told The RM.
"In a short space of time it has moved from 'this is how itmustbe'to 'let's get back to work; and with tourism a major player in the country's economy, our railways have a significant role to play.
"How they can do that safely and viably is what myself and a number of other individuals from heritage railways are looking at'.'
One ofthe central issues facing railways will be the requirement to maintain social distancing on trains and at stations, something the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has also covered in its Inspection Guidance also issued on May 11.
Primarily, the report looks at the preparatory inspection and administration that each railway should undertake before attempting any form of post-lockdown operation, but it also says:'lt is likely that some form of social distancing will remain in place for passengers and staff/ volunteers.
'Beyond the risks associated with an extended shut down period, the principal challenge railways face will be how to manage the impact of social distancing requirements for both passengers and staff/volunteers.
Controls are likely to include minimising the numbers of staff/further volunteers whilst maintaining safety, implementing physical controls (barriers, screens etc), social distancing, good hygiene, and clear messaging'.
The ORR paper also advises that railways should assess how they manage the impact of the Covid-19 risk, and apply social distancing (and other controls) in particular on stations and platforms, on board trains, between passengers, between train crew and in the confined space of a locomotive footplate.
"Our railways will do all they can to meet the Government's guidelines, but the final decision on whether to visit a railway will be down to the public alone."
Cleaning
It adds:'Railways should assess the need for deep cleaning before reopening, where and by whom. Railways should institute a suitable cleaning regime for operation - for example of coaches, offices, waiting rooms and lavatories. Focus should be on high traffic touch points such as doors and buttons.
Arrangements for staff and passengers to ensure personal hygiene on railway premises must include consideration of
the availability of hand-washing facilities/anti-bacterial hand sanitiser gels.
This is also something the HRA is looking at in detail. ''There has got to be a general position that, if a railway reopens, it must increase its cleaning and hygiene approach as a matter of course;' said Mr Oates.
What form on-train social distancing may take is still the subject of ongoing discussion, and will be governed in part by the type of rolling stock in use on any particular railway.
Compartment stock, for example, may be limited to family household groups in each compartment, while'open' stock, including some Mkl s, may be restricted to back-to-back seating, avoiding passengers other than afamily sitting opposite.
'When it comes to the crunch, the message to the public will be straight forward;' said Mr Oates. ''Visit a railway if you want to, but if you don't, then don't!
"Our railways will do all they can to meet the Government's guidelines, but the final decision on whether to visit a railway will be down to the public alone:'
Audience
This leads directly onto the second ofthe two central issues surrounding a return to semi-normality- can railways reopen economically?
Can they attract a big enough audience, and can they make money on services?
This is particularly relevant to lines that rely heavily on paid staff for their operation; staff which in anumber of cases have been furloughed until the end of October.
"If a railway has to unfurlough its staff in order to reopen, but cannot attract an audience or accommodate enough passengers on each train, then it could lead to financial problems and even redundancies;' explained Mr Oates.
"It may be helpful if only certain staff return from furlough initially, but there are other considerations such as how much of the railway do you reopen, or how many stations?
"A railway does not necessarily need to reopen its full length to begin with, and it may be more economical to run trains over a shorter distance until the audience grows or the financial position improves.
"Timetables and operating days could be planned to deliver good value, but not over-burden manpower or finances. Volunteer availability must also be taken into account:'
Those railways that are primarily reliant on volunteers may face similar issues - volunteering is a matter of choice, and such railways will have to ensure they have a minimum number of suitably qualified people available in order to run atrain service safely, and maintain the required cleaning/hygiene regimens.
That said, with the greater percentage of the volunteer work force generally all of retirement age - the most vulnerable in relation to Covid-19 - railways will have to take this into consideration.
Of course, having willing staff and volunteers is one thing, but what about the audience?
"Like any visitor attraction, before any railway considers reopening it is important they also look at the local visitor economy, as it is pointless to reopen if the surrounding visitor economy is closed;'said Mr Oates.
Management
"This is particularly relevant to those lines that rely on seasonal visitors or holidaymakers. If the B&Bs are closed, or the petrol stations, then there will be no audience to run a train service for.
"It is essential therefore that railways find out what their local destination management organisation is doing or planning. What are nearby attractions doing or planning?What are nearby railways planning? Call them all, and share views. The sad truth is our railways are in the midst of three winters.
"They emerged from one winter at the start of the season, only to find themselves faced with another as lockdown began. For some, they will leave lockdown later in the year and immediately enter the next winter season, wiping out 2020 in its entirety:'
Some railways such as the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway (see separate story) have already decided to cancel all
2020 events, including Christmas services, but how many follow suit remains to be seen.
In the meantime, Steve Oates and the HRA will continue to provide suggestions and guidance for railways as the situation evolves and changes.
"It's essential that all lines follow the ORR's inspection guidance, and we will develop information that supports that or is in addition to it;'he said.
"Ultimately, we can only make suggestions, but by doing so we hope to make the transition as smooth as possible:'