I'm going to stick my neck out and say that I do believe the KWVR will still be around in 25 years, no question.
It's one of very few examples of a complete original line (in fact, the extension of the run-around loop at Oxenhope means it's actually slightly longer than it's ever been). Its location and intact historical buildings/stations mean that from an enthusiasts' perspective it can be an authentic L&Y, LMS or BR-era branch, it has an interesting collection of locos and stock and puts on good quality events that offer variation and interest.
From a non-enthusiast perspective:
- It has a mainline connection, making it easier for the general public to visit from afar. Not just a connection either - it shares Keighley's mainline station.
- As a the filming location of The Railway Children, people love to vist to see Oakworth Station, and they ususally have either 5775 or the L&Y tender loco in their Railway Children guise for tourists too. There's also a walkers trail along the line linking locations in the film I believe. They may not be able to trade on this so much in the future as the film is 50 years old this year, but it is still a part of the attraction.
- Haworth is, as has been mentioned, the home of the Bronte sisters and tourism in the area trades on that.
- The railway is great at running non-enthusiast events. They do dinosaur, superhero, tv character events as well as being a really central part of the Howarth 1940s weekend.
- Local tourism benefits hugely from the railway - how many railway visitors would have even heard of Oxenhope if the railway didn't terminate there? Nobody goes to Keighley for the scenery. It's in the interest of everyone in the Worth Valley and local businesses to keep the line open.
- Its unique collection of vintage carriages and proximity to Leeds/Bradford makes it an attractive prospect for filming contracts.
In addition, every station offers something to visitors, enthusiast or otherwise:
- Keighley: Authentic mainline steam-era station, connection to national network for visitors from Leeds, Bradford, Skipton, even Carlisle. There is the Cliffe Castle Museum too, tho it's not really close to the station.
- Ingrow: Vintage Carriages Trust museum, Ingrow Loco museum
- Damems: Smallest full-size railway station in England (Britain?)
- Oakworth: Famous as the star of The Railway Children.
- Haworth: Bronte sisters, Bronte Parsonage Museum, the old high street, seasonal/1940s events; station shop
- Oakworth: Loco shed museum; station shop
There aren't many railways that can offer such a genuine range of attractions condensed into 5 miles of line, making it possible to do 2 or 3 in a single day trip.
By comparison, the Embsay & Bolton Abbey Railway does have huge potential but currently offers very little aside from a 20 minute ride each way behind a steam locomotive. Neither station is particularly near anything else - Bolton Abbey Station is only a 5 minute
drive from the priory but a 35-minute walk, nearly half of which is down the side of the A59 with no pavement. Both stations lack real attraction too - at embsay there is a shop, cafe and minature railway but nothing else, whilst Bolton Abbey station doesn't appear to have much at all at present. Without serious investment, such as a museum or at least loco display shed (similar to Oxenhope) and an extension into Skipton I can see that line folding in the next 25 years because people simply won't drive for an hour from Leeds for example for two 20 minute journeys if there's barely anything else to do there.
Before anyone gets mad at me like the last time I said similar, please understand that I really want the E&BASR to be succesful. I have lots of happy memories of visiting as a kid, but having visited around 18 months ago as part of a day trip to Bolton Abbey, I was really disappointed; there was nothing to encourage me to go back for specially for the railway and I certainly couldn't spend a day there.