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Heritage Railways Chopped?


0bserver

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3 minutes ago, Blade Runner said:

In my business here in the UK I use pressure vessels for part of the process we do.

These bits of plant have to be tested every 6 months for integrity as if they "Let Go" it would be like a bomb going off.

Who does this testing on the pressure vessels that are steam trains on the IOM?

They are issued with a boiler certificate and tested in the same manner any of the UK heritage railways are.

The boilers are sent to the UK for refurbishment/repair or even for new ones.

https://www.pressreader.com/uk/steam-railway-uk/20200306/282333976945998

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8 minutes ago, manxman1980 said:

They are issued with a boiler certificate and tested in the same manner any of the UK heritage railways are.

The boilers are sent to the UK for refurbishment/repair or even for new ones.

https://www.pressreader.com/uk/steam-railway-uk/20200306/282333976945998

So not tested on a regular basis then?

I would not get on an IOM mountain railway tram because they are totally unsafe and now I know that about the steam trains, I would avoid a steam train too, as it's a pressure vessel that is not regularly tested, oh dear.

Edited by Blade Runner
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51 minutes ago, Blade Runner said:

So not tested on a regular basis then?

I would not get on an IOM mountain railway tram because they are totally unsafe and now I know that about the steam trains, I would avoid a steam train too, as it's a pressure vessel that is not regularly tested, oh dear.

Whilst not denying in any way the previous mountain tram incidents, I used the SMER a couple of weeks ago and the descent was extremely slow and sedate, I doubt if the car exceeded 20mph anywhere between the summit and Laxey.

The horse tram the same day however was a different matter. If anybody is expecting a smooth, quiet ride on the new rails, they are in for a big disappointment. It was a bit like sitting on a rock crusher without ear defence, and traversing the "crossover" part in particular is only for those with no sense of tortured mechanicals. The whole job is a total balls-up.

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1 hour ago, Blade Runner said:

So not tested on a regular basis then?

I would not get on an IOM mountain railway tram because they are totally unsafe and now I know that about the steam trains, I would avoid a steam train too, as it's a pressure vessel that is not regularly tested, oh dear.

Wait till you find out how these internal combustion engines work....

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3 hours ago, Blade Runner said:

So not tested on a regular basis then?

I would not get on an IOM mountain railway tram because they are totally unsafe and now I know that about the steam trains, I would avoid a steam train too, as it's a pressure vessel that is not regularly tested, oh dear.

They may well be tested regularly and presumably in accordance with their boiler certificate.

I dont work for the railway so ask someone who does.

Given they haven't had a catastrophic failure then I would suggest something is going on.

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23 hours ago, 0bserver said:

The actual cost pre-covid was something like £8.5m when you included the capital budget and operating losses/subsidy. 

Treasury have now slashed the capital budget from £4.5m to £2.25m and down to zero from 2025. 

There's still a chunky loss though. Each single passenger journey is essentially subsidised by the taxpayer to the tune of between £10 and £20. 

Well you'd expect capital expenditure to drop now because they are at the end of the programme of renewal of track and infrastructure. We have almost new railways built in the last 30 years. It would be rather stupid to get to that point and then junk everything. Of course, I wouldn't put anything past them.

All of these posters saying it has to make a profit in its own right. Are you for real? What about the people who come over to see them and ride them? Don't you think they contribute to the economy in other ways? Accommodation? Hospitality? Travel to and from? It's not just gricers either. There seem to have been decent loadings from what I've seen this year with lots of young families aboard. If we are looking to be in the tourism game, we have to have something to offer visitors. After bikes the railways must surely be our biggest draw.

Our railway offering is unique in the world. Unbelievable that we have puddings actually wanting to scrap them. They are a massive treasure but they need better marketing.

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29 minutes ago, 0bserver said:

Which is exactly why people will pay higher fares to make sure they break even and survice into the future. Win. Win. Win.

They would. But we also need to market them properly, and not just to the UK. Do remember though, that if you chop them it's not just the operating deficit you lose. You also lose the incidental revenue spend of visitors on other things from the moment they step on the boat/Island.

Edited by woolley
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