S&C reopening special with Flying Scotsman 31/03/17

Settle & Carlisle Re-opening Special


The Keighley & Worth Valley Railway is delighted to announce the running of a commemorative railtour from Oxenhope to Carlisle behind ‘Flying Scotsman’, in conjunction with Northern, Network Rail and Friends of the Settle & Carlisle. The train, which will be operated by West Coast Railways, will form part of the re-opening celebrations of the Settle & Carlisle line which is scheduled to re-open on this day.

The history of the Settle & Carlisle line is well documented and is, arguably the most scenic inland railway route in Britain. However in February 2016, after a 500,000 tonne landslip at Eden Brows, north of Armathwaite, the ground beneath the tracks slipped 5ft below its normal level and the railway was closed north of Appleby. Sitting over 240 feet above the River Eden, re-instatement of the subsided section was to be the subject of a £23 million engineering marathon involving the building an enormous concrete and steel structure that will sit beneath the railway and driving high-strength piles into the bedrock of the Eden Gorge.

This immense feat of modern railway engineering is due for completion by the end of March and the KWVR special from Oxenhope to Carlisle and return will be one of the first trains to traverse the closed section and will represent a fitting way to pay tribute to the work of our railway engineers and the re-opening of this special line.

Railtour information

• Tickets price: £220 per person.
• Tickets are NOW on sale via the website on-line booking system or by phone from 09.30 on Saturday 14th January, 01535 645214. Ticket office opening hours 09.30 – 16.30 every day.
• Pick up stations: Oxenhope, Haworth, Keighley or Skipton.
• Departure times: Approx. 08:30 from Oxenhope, exact times will be announced nearer the time.
• Tickets include: Complimentary light refreshments (soft drinks on the outward journey and a celebratory glass of prosecco on the return) and a souvenir brochure.
• Real ale bar and hot drinks will be available to purchase on board.
• Approximately three hours in Carlisle.
• Return timings: To be confirmed nearer the time but will be early evening.

Tickets will sell fast, so don’t delay tickets are NOW on sale. Book now on-line >>>.





£220! . Presumably thats in standard? Sounds a bit crazy but with the combination of FS and the S&C,who knows?

 

The description suggests a service akin to non-dining first class with refreshments etc., but that certainly is a very high cost. Way out of my price bracket - I could fly to New York for that.

 

I've seen some pretty ridiculous pricing lately but I think that takes the prize. Hot drinks are not even included! I hope they get a nicely folded table cloth..

And to think you can do the majority of the route a few weeks earlier with east coast motive power for £18, though granted a seat may not be guaranteed..

 

I wonder if it will be 11 Aug 1968 all over again?

 

I'm sure that if the KWVR received the same level of subsidy, their price would be proportionate to that!!!

 

Scotsman's first run over Shap & the S&C last year was priced at 89.00 for standard. This is just an all out milking of the general public !

 

I wouldn't mind paying 15 guineas.

 

Presumably the KWVR have done their market research, and have identified a market segment that is happy to cough up that amount of money. I certainly hope so, otherwise they might be seriously out of pocket.

As a family man, and now a pensioner, living as well as I can on a modest income, I have always felt that mainline steam was just beyond my means, although I have indulged very occasionally. But this is way beyond what I'm prepared to consider. I paid less than this for last year's 3-day Irish railtour.

Good luck to the KWVR, though. If they can sell out and make a nice profit then it all goes to a good cause.

 

slightly off topic

JAN122017
Flying Scotsman Photographic Permits


Some photo permit holders received a note with their renewal notices to alert them to there being special arrangements during ‘Flying Scotsman’s’ visit. Once the visit was confirmed, our priority was to get the booking system up and running, but with some permit holder’s renewals being issued around the time of confirmation of the visit, we chose to send the holding note with the renewal rather than say nothing at that time.

Having had time to consider arrangements, we can confirm that we have taken the decision to ask all members for an additional contribution during ‘Flying Scotsman’s’ visit to ensure that we recoup the not insignificant costs of the event. Therefore, for those with photo permits who choose to use them during the week of the visit, we will be charging a one-off fee.

This contribution will cover the cost of special Hi-Viz vests, which will assist us with policing line-side access during the week of the visit. Due to the potential numbers visiting we did consider withdrawing passes altogether to help avoid any issues with managing line-side access. However we have been able avoid to this by issuing special vests, supported by plans for strict policing of access during the week. Of course, if there are any problems we reserve the right to withdraw such access, but hope that such action will not be required.



We ask in particular that all permit-holders respect our land boundaries and do not trespass on any private land. If you do have permission from land owners to take photographs from their land, then we would recommend having written authority from them with you to avoid being challenged during the event. We ask that you assist us during the event by alerting a member of Railway staff or, once you are in a position of safety, by calling the office on 01535 645214 if you see anyone not wearing the special clothing and/or trespassing on private land.

The fee of £25 that we are charging photo permit holders will cover the cost of the Hi-Viz as well as make a contribution toward the cost of the event, whilst allowing our photo permit holders to capture what we hope will become a very special event in the Preservation Society’s history.

Applications for the special access photo permit and vest can be made to the Administration Office at Haworth.

Please do note that anyone who is line-side without the special Hi-Viz AND their K&WVR photo permit will be removed. The special permit and special clothing will be valid for the entire period of Flying Scotsman’s visit and is non-transferable.

By news@kwvr • Posted in Flying Scotsman, KWVR • Tagged 60103, Flying Scotsman, Keighley & Worth Valley Railway, KWVR, Worth Valley Railway

 

On what date will Network Rail announce that Flying Scotsman is out of gauge for the rebuilt S&C? Place you bets now...

 

As they move off shed would be my bet !

 

This is way OTT ! Why not just follow in line with what the ELR, NYMR & SVR have done ! Just another milking in my opinion ! No doubt, the lineside scheme at the KWVR requires you to be a payed member and also pay the lineside fee for the pass ? That should be enough !

 

In a commercial world, the price is the price. If you don't like it then don't buy it. Market forces will win out in the end. If the tour sells well then good for KWVR. If not they will learn a big lesson. That it is just Standard Class is a concern though. Same goes for photo access.

More interesting is will it actually open that day. National Rail still showing bus replacement.

 

We should be pleased that NRM is operating in a commercially expedient manner by clearly obtaining premium rates for hire which will hopefully offset, to a degree, the collossal overhaul cost and operating overheads. There is lots of wailing when other public assets are seen to be not prudently managed so there can be no complaints if attempts to maximise revenue are made in this case.

 

I've avoided criticising the KWVR so far, but this seems a bit mean to me. Permit holders already have to be members on top of the annual permit fee. There might be some goodwill lost over this decision.

Also, it might backfire. If it forces encourages photographers to use public vantage points (alongside the general public) then it could get quite heated.

What the hell is the NRM charging the KWVR for the loan of this National Treasure, that the KWVR has to impose this sort of charge to recoup their costs? I'm all for the KWVR making a decent profit, but they need to be careful who they alienate in the process.

Flying Scotsman is not the be all and end all.

 

Not really sure why there would be any conflict here?

 

Time will tell I guess, but I for one, as an existing KWVR member and photo permit holder, will be voting with my feet next year if this one off scheme comes to fruition.

I love the KWVR, in my experience the loco crews and station staff have always been the most friendly and helpful bunch of volunteers I've come across and I can't help thinking that this is a management decision akin to something that only a politician could normally dream up. I'll be writing to the general manager to express my views and I hope that other members who are thinking along the same lines will do likewise.

I wish the KWVR well and I hope that it prospers from the Scotsman event which I'm sure it will, but I think that a policy such as this could result in the railway losing some of its longer term supporters for the sake of trying to make a quick buck, which has a smell of sharp practice about it. As for the missive about encouraging snooping and whistleblowing on non-conformists, well, you couldn't really make it up could you?

 

I'll be interested to see the responses in the next Push and Pull (if any). Having been a KWVRPS member for nearly 40 years I don't blame the railway for trying to maximise the return on hiring in Scotsman but I too am concerned that this approach to lineside passes is not the right one and appears to be an unfair targeting of a small section of the society membership. In contrast I thought the SVR move to suspend them for the duration of the event was far better in avoiding any issues over lineside access.