Teifi Valley Railway

Ah sorry. Yes I believe that the tunnel is still owned by BRRB in addition to other structures.

Regards

Matt

 

Details of ownership of Alan George. As usual with these groups, set up years ago, some of the members are no longer traceable. The main players are the Teifi Valley Railway Society and Dr George Penn's son. Anyone who offered to buy his shares would have a say in what happened to the loco.
At end of 2013 there were 1000 shares issued. The Society had 444, Roger Penn 240. S Long had 200 but unfortunately died soon after. Presumably his widow now holds them. There are 11 other very small shareholders.

 

It's not Llanybydder, that is on the main line Carm --> Aber line. Llandysul is on the branch to Newcastle Emlyn where the trackbed us under a new bypass. the roundabout at the southern end practically covers the old station site. See https://binged.it/2nYUmRb

 

But if the will was there....I reckon I could find a few Welshmen who know a bit about making tunnels. If the railway could get to Llandysul it would be a game changer for the whole area.

 

But it won't. As this thread shows it's unlikely even to run again over the length the TVR still owns …
It's not will, it's money and, history has shown that money put into it has a habit of draining away.

 

Indeed - the expression 'throwing good money after bad' comes to mind... Instead of 'wouldn't it be nice to extend the railway to Llandysul?' I reckon it's better to ask what can be saved from the disaster and used elsewhere?

Elizabeth - who owns Sgt Murphy? Is that also divided into shares? How much each were the shares in Alan George?

 

I hope the L&B never hits a rough patch Martin, you seem eager to have the TVR gone and it assets distributed elsewhere

 

You are very likely correct in this statement. BUT it is not a foregone conclusion. Given a change in management, which a new significant investor could bring about, the TVR might fulfil the optimism Liz and others had before.

 

Good luck finding that significant investor.
As for the L&B, as it can raise six figure sums for a new build loco, six figure sums to help purchase Blackmoor station, another six figure sum to fund the planning submission, it seems to be fairly okay. According to the website the TVR has not even raised the money to buy the parts needed to get Sgt Murphy steaming again.

Quod erat demonstrandum.

 

As a 'cymro cymraeg' I would be sorry to see any economic asset in Welsh heartland areas close, especially a NG railway! On the other hand, the recent history of the TVR is not encouraging. Without re-hashing what Elizabeth has told us on this forum, it seems to be a story of continual retreat, selling of land, and moving away from the railway idea. As with any cash strapped line, the appearance of a financial saviour would of course be welcome, but the number of times that has happened (i.e. hardly ever) suggests this is clutching at straws.

I'm not sure what the answer is, but feel that if they cannot get a steam engine operational, and re-lay the line back towards the original length by next high season, it could be the final nail in the railway coffin. It might, therefore, be worth discreetly sounding out the loco owners to see if they see the future of their engines at the TVR or elsewhere.

 

The two railways have such a different history with the TVR only been rebuilt on a standard gauge track bed and so wont have the same glamour against the L&B with its history so the L&B will be able to tap into rebuilding history to get the money against the TVR not been able to do this so will have a much harder job raising any money and with the problems a few years ago will make it harder. But I do hope they succeed in getting it going again.

 

I don't think arrogance or gloating at another railways misfortune reflects particularly well - like I said, I hope the L&B never hits a rough patch

I'm not sure arrogance at the L&Bs position reflects particularly well, and reads like gloating at another railways misfortune.

Personally I hope that the TVR survives, and if it doesn't, I hope the railway can carry on in some form elsewhere in South Wales.

 

Not gloating or arrogance (apologies if that's how it sounded). It was simply a reply to your comment about the possibility of the L&B hitting a rough patch. I tried (unsuccessfully it seems) to point out that this is unlikely with the L&B as it has a large supporter base. As for the TVR obviously those who run it and own the shares will make up their own minds what to do. Good luck to them, but at some point reality may have to be faced....

 

He's had an operation I gather, not sure how recovery is going

 

There was a post above which described the TVR as the only narrow gauge heritage line in South Wales, on the grounds that the Brecon Mountain Railway doesn't count, as it is too commercial.

What really, though, is the difference between the BMR and TVR setups? Both use former standard gauge trackbeds, with equiment that, therefore, has had to be brought in from elsewhere. The BMR started with similar locos to those the TVR has now; they had to bring in larger ones because of their loads/gradients. From this remove, and from the discussions on here, the TVR seems to be just as commercial an operation as the BMR, given the comments about how it needs a significant new investor to bring cash to the business and turn things around.

This is not meant to be an attack or a dig at anyone's comments, more just that as an outsider I am puzzled: what is the difference between the two, and does it make the TVR somehow more "legitimate" for some people?

 

I fully accept that I was being flippant and facetious - it's only that the BMR doesn't allow volunteers

 

Sgt Murphy is owned by the Teifi Valley Railway Society. Alan George shares were originally £1 each but I believe they were later increased to £100 each some years ago. Roger Penn tried to sell his shares to the Railway Society, but they found the price too high.

 

Finance was always a problem with the TVR and any extensions/improvements were only possible with grant aid, particularly EU money. Most recently, I set up a 5 year project with the Forestry Commission, who wanted to encourage public access to the countryside and paid for about a mile of new fencing, upgrading of woodland paths with gates, information boards re. wildlife etc. They even paid us for strimming the trackside. Unfortunately the investor reliant management cut down the trees, destroyed the paths and broke down the new fences. The new management tried to apply for a grant to repair the damage!