The HRA view
HERITAGE RAILWAY ASSOCIATION CHIEF EXEC STEVE OATES TACKLES STEAM’S BURNING ISSUES
“IT’S STAGGERING how little they appreciate the issues. Casual comments on social media like ‘I think the railway should hire locomotive x for the season’ show huge ignorance of the issues associated with heritage railway management. The background work is massive, and it’s not all about jumping out of bed in the morning with a spring in my step knowing I’m off playing trains all day.”
Shortly after we’d emerged from Covid, I asked a selection of heritage railway general managers what occupies their time day-to-day and to provide some insights into the challenges and attitudes they face. It was very enlightening. While there were varying views, and some did things one way and some another, there was no sugar-coating. Every response told it like it is.
If we thought things were tough in 2021, 18 months on it’s a whole different ball game, and regular readers of this column and that of ‘Industry Insider’ may have noticed a bit of a recurring theme to our respective musings. The phrase ‘Covid was easy compared to this’ rings true.
Right now it’s immensely tough out there, so attacks on those doing their absolute best must stop; those with relevant skills and experience need to step up, and everyone who is part of this industry and genuinely cares about heritage rail must recognise that it is help and support that is needed, not selfish demands and nasty criticism.
I wouldn’t mind betting that if there’s one thing that every ‘know-it-all’ enthusiast, armchair member and volunteer could do that would make every general manager’s life just a little bit easier, it would be to actually understand the realities of running a railway in 2023 and stop the endless drivel and ill-informed comments and postings on social media and elsewhere.
Some of the comments I received from GMs on
