Officials get upbeat report on Rail Explorers
Owners of the Rail Explorers say the inaugural season put the attraction on the right track, with 10,042riders.
KINGSTON, N.Y. >> Owners of the Rail Explorers tourist ride say the inaugural season put the attraction on the right track, with 10,042 riders.
At a meeting Monday of the county Trail and Rail Advisory Committee, Rail Explorers owner Alex Catchpoole said the ride operated with 16 full-time and six part-time employees, as well as two salaried positions created for the business.
“We have had an amazing first season,” he said.
“We have been sold out for days, sometimes weeks in advance,” Catchpoole said. “People would show up at the station hoping that somebody wasn’t going to show up for their ride, hoping that maybe they could get those seats if there was a no-show.”
Catchpoole said he is considering expanding the number of rail vehicles, which cover an 8-mile round trip along the former Ulster and Delaware tracks, from the nine used for the 2018 season.
“We start at the Phoenicia station at the Empire State Rail Museum’s location, proceed toward Boiceville for four miles,” he said. “We built a little turn around picnic area there. We then turn all the bikes around and return them to the station. So it’s an eightmile round trip that all those 10,000 people managed to complete.”
Ulster County, which owns the tracks, awarded a five-year contract to the firm. The Catskill Mountain Railroad, which formerly operated a tourist train on those tracks, continues to operate a tourist train between Kingston and Hurley.
“The company has put in over $100,000 in terms of site improvement investment,” Catchpoole said.
“It’s a little early to have been able to process accurate economic impact figures ... but anecdotal evidence from some of the local businesses (include) Woodstock Brewery,” he said. “They certainly got a lot of money from our staff over the season ... after hours.”
There has also been an interest in Rail Explorers by people with special needs, he said.
“We have seen a lot of riders who are on the autism spectrum and this is a great activity that seems to really connect with people on the spectrum,” Catchpoole said. “The families come out and they are thrilled to find an activity that their family member can enjoy and share with them.”