2023 proved to be a fantastic year for the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, despite the backdrop of a challenging year for the Island’s tourism sector, with the Havenstreet attraction welcoming a record-breaking 130,000 visitors across the year. The Railway had a particularly strong increase in numbers across the Summer school holiday period and its popular events calendar saw growth at key events including the Summer Steam Show and the Festival of Transport. Having welcomed ,7600 visitors to its Christmas events, the Steam Railway is now into its closed period when planned work on track maintenance and renewals takes place. Peter Taylor, Chairman, has said:
“In a difficult marketplace which has seen one major Island attraction close, our Railway has continued to appeal through its unique high-quality heritage offer, great customer experiences and value for money. In 2023 we were rightly crowned as Heritage Railway of the Year – and equally importantly retained our Tripadvisor ‘Travellers Choice’ rating as determined solely by our visitors. “Everything we have achieved in 2023, and indeed the last 52 years, has only been possible through the remarkable work of our now 500 volunteers who work tirelessly to sustain and build upon our award-winning railway. “As an educational charity our work includes a huge rage of activities, not just the running of the trains for visitors and enthusiasts alike. Every pound we raise through visitors visiting the railway is invested back into the railway, enhancing the heritage and the experience for current and future generations”.
After the successes of 2023 though, the Railway is not resting on its laurels… Marc Morgan Huws, Interim General Manager, says:
“While 2023 proved to be an amazing year we are acutely aware that 2024 will be another challenging year in terms of the visitor economy and rising customer expectations. “We already have plans in place to add exciting new events to the existing calendar for 2024 – Fish & Chip Evenings in the Summer and a Gin and Steam event in June – and to take our Santa Special offer for Christmas 2024 to a new level, delivering some magic of Christmas’ past with new activities and additional dressing of our stations.” “Work has already started on an £80k project to create a high-quality permanent café and bar in our Events field ahead of Easter 2024 as we continue to invest in the customer experience. At Wootton we hope to complete the initial build of our Goods Shed display facility. Meanwhile ‘on the tracks’ 2024 is set to see the completion of the two car Ryde Pier Tram and the return to service of our Terrier locomotive Freshwater after an extensive overhaul”. “Meanwhile our volunteers and small team of staff are busy around our station sites making a special effort to improve the look and feel of our stations ahead of the new season”.
Perhaps they should now start looking at extending to Whippingham which would give them easier public access.
Extending all the way to Newport would be great, Wootton would become a park and ride for me. It doesn’t have to be a steam engine. An old diesel two-car DMU set would do in nice southern green.
Or a less polluting electric tram for frequent services.
IWSR would need colossal funding to sort out the movement of land at the Wootton end. I’d imagine there would be extensive engineering surveys required before any decision to cut through the blocked-up road bridge. While I am confident with those involved with the IWSR, I am sceptical of third parties who would need to contribute, e.g. Island Roads. Their past history and evidence of achieving projects on time and within budget (or not) are what concerns me.
Not like it would ever happen.
I’m personally with the idea that the old power plant next to curry’s falling apart could be demolished and a station set up there. Even if the track diverted from the cycle path at whilpinggam into island harbour along the medina track and crosses over into the industrial estate, I’d be happy for a train into Newport. Would take a lot of money and a lot of time to sort it all out though
Not like it would ever happen.
Which goes to show, if you’ve got a good, well-run attraction then the tourists will come.
But whilst taking nothing away from this great attraction, the fact that the Summer was dire and many other Island attractions have now gone forever likely helped the high turn over last year.
That’s great news! Really did seem really quiet elsewhere on the Island? I guess they had a lot of day visitors combining a ticket from Portsmouth, Guildford, Woking and London? Good news though!
So showing that visitors care nothing about the ‘environment’ when it comes to ‘entertaining’ their bored children for an hour or two.
Hence the Smallbrooke speedway has a equally uncaring bunch of bored happy to ‘ignore’ what they preach, when it ‘suits’ or entertains.
Suddenly the Polar bear can drown, suddenly the little old lady with lung issues can cough to death, so long as Tyler and Fleur are ‘amused’.
You really are a joy aren’t you? Some people like to enjoy themselves, something you clearly know nothing about.
Would love to see them be allowed up to Ryde St Johns, even if it was for special occasions. I was told that the junction is not strong enough?? Any one know if that is right?
The junction in general used to be, as it suggests a junction. A signal box would operate to switch steam trains from Ryde to go down to either ventnor or cowes, however when it closed the line cut off the junction and the steam track ends there. A third rail electric line for the class 38 was installed; not sure if the train would work on that track unless they needed one parallel to it up to st johns
Not like it would ever happen.
Bob Seely preached this and knackered it with his ridiculous restoring your railway project he was slung £50k by the Department for Transport to keep him quiet. The final business case submission was rubbish and rejected. The Office of Rail & Road insisted that the IOWSR trains were fully compatible with a 100mph main line and that the 3rd rail was isolated when steam trains operated.
I helped work out the railway operations at Smallbrook Jcn which was rejected despite being in use on the mainland.
The Island Line upgrade that our illustrious MP boasts about has blown £50m so far on the Pier and track upgrades. OSL the track upgrade contractors went bust, the South Western Railway contract manager has retired on ill-health grounds.
Proof people still love railways.
Might be a good idea to re-instate the Island Railways in full.
Compulsory purchases to obtain the old Railway Stations etc
The New World Order is to create 15 minute cities and get vehicles off the
Road.
Proof that people still love HERITAGE railways. There’s a world of difference between heritage and modern.
Well done you lot ! You must be chuffed about that ! Choo Choo….