Polar Express to operate from Euston, Christmas 2024

[12LDA28C]

The poor marketing of heritage railways is really shown when Londoners think Heritage railways arent accsessiable for them . From St Pancras you can get to Grand Central, Nene Valley and Bluebell by direct train in roughly an hours time, Spa valley with a change at london bridge and Chinor and Princess with a bus to Marylebone

The marketing must certainly be dire if you think there's a preserved railway called the 'Grand Central' or that you can get a bus to Marylebone from the 'Chinor and Princess' Railway.

 

[renegademaster]

The marketing must certainly be dire if you think there's a preserved railway called the 'Grand Central' or that you can get a bus to Marylebone from the 'Chinor and Princess' Railway.

You knew i meant Great Central... and the bus you are getting is the one to Marylebone

 

[Phil Neal]

Why can I see this being London's answer to Glasgow's "Willy's Chocolate Experience"...?

I don't know, We ran it sucessfully at Edinburgh last year, and sucessfully run it at 3 heritage locations since 2019, last year we carried 170,000 passengers in the season. All with 4+ star reviews. Perhaps the answer to your question lies within yourself?

 

[Russel]

How did it work in Edinburgh last year? Why do posters here have to be so endlessly negative about anything slightly different?

How many times has Edinburgh been in the news for being one of the worst stations in the country and how many times has the transport secretary had to intervene?

I'm not being negative, I'm being realistic, Euston and the WCML can be shambolic at times, as we are all aware, it turns shambolic in a regular basis, one of these polar express services getting caught up in the usual mess isn't going to generate great publicity, is it?

 

[Phil Neal]

That is the same people I’m referring to then, they’re not involved with Weardale now but they were historically. They moved their North East operation of the Polar Express from Weardale to Wensleydale several years ago, presumably as Wensleydale can provide a steam loco whereas Weardale can’t.

I agree they’re very very good at it.


That’ll be the standard heritage service, which on a lot of lines especially if steam is involved costs more to run even with volunteers than it generates in revenue.

We are nothing to do with Weardale and never have been. PNP Events first operated in 2019, and we grew out of Telford Steam Railway (who we don't run the event for).

But thank you, we do feel we have almost got it nailed down, but always room for improvement!

 

[DanNCL]

We are nothing to do with Weardale and never have been. PNP Events first operated in 2019, and we grew out of Telford Steam Railway (who we don't run the event for).

But thank you, we do feel we have almost got it nailed down, but always room for improvement!

Which company ran the Polar Express franchise at Weardale then? Someone clearly put it on.
And I remember very clearly it popping up at Wensleydale almost as soon as it had gone from Weardale.

 

[Western Sunset]

If they staff the gateline with elves, hopefully the customers will have a better service than usual at Euston...

 

[12LDA28C]

You knew i meant Great Central... and the bus you are getting is the one to Marylebone

A bus to Princes Risborough then a train to Marylebone.

Which company ran the Polar Express franchise at Weardale then? Someone clearly put it on.
And I remember very clearly it popping up at Wensleydale almost as soon as it had gone from Weardale.

Anyone can run a 'Polar Express' train if they want to, assuming they have locos, stock, staff and finances to do so which I assume would also involve licensing fees for the use of the name. Vintage Trains of course run a successful PE operation out of Birmingham Moor Street every year.

 

[SuspectUsual]

Intrigued what you mean by ''playing trains"

Operating a generally very sparsely loaded service with Pacers and the occasional 33 or 37

 

[DanNCL]

Anyone can run a 'Polar Express' train if they want to, assuming they have locos, stock, staff and finances to do so which I assume would also involve licensing fees for the use of the name. Vintage Trains of course run a successful PE operation out of Birmingham Moor Street every year.

That’s interesting, I was under the impression that Warner Bros gave the licensing rights to use the Polar Express name (as opposed to running a similar operation with a different name) exclusively to one promoter in the UK, who then chose which line(s) to run it.
Tie that with it appearing at Wensleydale shortly after stopping at Weardale, you can see why one would think it’s the same people.

Turns out you shouldn’t believe everything you hear on the platform end!

 

[Phil Neal]

Which company ran the Polar Express franchise at Weardale then? Someone clearly put it on.
And I remember very clearly it popping up at Wensleydale almost as soon as it had gone from Weardale.

They ran it themselves under the BAR banner, which was ultimately Iowa Pacific.

And yes, anyone can run the event if they meet the criteria. We operate 5 out of the 14 in the UK.

 

[12C]

Which company ran the Polar Express franchise at Weardale then? Someone clearly put it on.
And I remember very clearly it popping up at Wensleydale almost as soon as it had gone from Weardale.

We did the Weardale one a few years back, it wasn’t the Polar Express as such but something very similar. I think it was called “The Train to Christmas Town” or something like that. The experience and story was almost exactly the same, but I guess they couldn’t get the license for the real deal.

 

[Phil Neal]

Worse. They lost the license for the real deal due to not paying the royalties ‍♂️

 

[DanNCL]

Worse. They lost the license for the real deal due to not paying the royalties ‍♂️

With Iowa Pacific that somehow doesn’t surprise me. Thankfully they’re out of the picture now.

 

[357]

This thread is highlighting the "play trains" camp and the "make money" camp.

I can't help but wonder why when someone has been able to identify where there is a product that significant numbers of people are happy to pay good money for - enthusiasts always complain.

I'd bet good money that Santa Specials and Polar Express services generate more income than all the galas put together at various places.

 

[duffield]

This thread is highlighting the "play trains" camp and the "make money" camp.

I can't help but wonder why when someone has been able to identify where there is a product that significant numbers of people are happy to pay good money for - enthusiasts always complain.

I'd bet good money that Santa Specials and Polar Express services generate more income than all the galas put together at various places.

Not all of us enthusiasts complain. I'm currently doing the rounds of the main autumn galas (five down, three to go!), and I'm extremely grateful that the kiddie and other theme days (not just Santa, Thomas days, Wizard days and all the rest) are what makes a lot of it possible, and long may it continue!

 

[Phil Neal]

I sit in the middle. We support our heritage hosts. We also own 5 carriages, and a Loco that work will be started on soon. I think we have been successful because we understand both sides.

 

[47434]

Operating a generally very sparsely loaded service with Pacers and the occasional 33 or 37

An interesting take on WR doing a decent job of staying solvent when other railways are publicly struggling.

There is no doubt that WR aspires to run steam but until there is appropriate infrastructure such as more passing loops, it simply isn't viable with such a long line. They have come back from a position of nearly being bust to being able to invest in infrastructure and of course the purchase of a class 47.

The last time I looked at their website they had regular diners, fish and chip trains and gin trains. What they don't do (because it simply isn't viable for enthusiasts turning up with HRA passes and riding for free) is run locos week in week out for the mileage accumulation fans.

What WR have also done an excellent job on is the station refurbs and living history offer.

 

[SuspectUsual]

An interesting take on WR doing a decent job of staying solvent when other railways are publicly struggling.

There is no doubt that WR aspires to run steam but until there is appropriate infrastructure such as more passing loops, it simply isn't viable with such a long line. They have come back from a position of nearly being bust to being able to invest in infrastructure and of course the purchase of a class 47.

The last time I looked at their website they had regular diners, fish and chip trains and gin trains. What they don't do (because it simply isn't viable for enthusiasts turning up with HRA passes and riding for free) is run locos week in week out for the mileage accumulation fans.

What WR have also done an excellent job on is the station refurbs and living history offer.

I spend half my time living within 400 yards of the Wensleydale and it’s noticeable how little publicity and engagement there is locally. It all feels a bit half cocked.

 

[Phil Neal]

I will echo that it feels like a different railway to the one that was there in 2018 when we first visited. Having been involved with other railways the more local people are the hardest people to engage.

There was an incident where one of our guests was assaulted by one of the railways neighbours, and the police were involved. All they had done was park completely legally on the road.

 

[185143]

If it's outside of zone 6, it doesn't exist...

I did hear someone in the Euston Tap referring to Leagrave as "way up North" last week!

 

[47434]

I spend half my time living within 400 yards of the Wensleydale and it’s noticeable how little publicity and engagement there is locally. It all feels a bit half cocked.

Maybe volunteer your time and expertise to help that engagement - I am certain they would appreciate it.

 

[Russel]

Maybe volunteer your time and expertise to help that engagement - I am certain they would appreciate it.

Why does this need to be the stock response to any post criticizing the heritage scene?

 

[Gwr12345]

Why does this need to be the stock response to any post criticizing the heritage scene?

It's the Wensleydale response! Look at some of the replies to their trip advisor reviews

Thank you for your review. Not 100% sure why you gave us the 3 star review (it certainly isn’t to help generate passenger revenue which you clearly appreciate we need to develop but hey ho…!) I am guessing it largely relates to the lack of a steam train. We would dearly like to operate steam but a) it is frightfully expensive and we need sufficient carriages to make it worthwhile and b) current footfall with the challenging economic climate coupled with steam would result in us making a loss and potentially closing. Not ideal! In terms of our visitor offer, things have changed enormously in the last couple of years. Leeming Bar for example has the amazing 1920’s station house with a team in full period dress talking you through life at a village station, brand new toilets, brand new maintenance shed, buffet and re-surfaced platform for better disabled access to the trains The parking space is currently reduced because we have taken to delivery of 2 miles worth of track to improve the ride which you note needs improving. Not ideal for parking, but better for the ride. You sense that the big problem is lack of money. Actually it isn’t, people volunteering is our no1 challenge. You could help here as you may be unable to contribute financially but we would welcome you developing our cafe’s with hot food, checking tickets and even re-laying the track in the car park to Redmire. So drop us a line and we will welcome you with open arms as one of our volunteers.

Thank you for taking the time to review the event. This was the first time we have run the Herriot train and for that reason it was done for no extra cost over and above the standard ticket price. It is fair to say the rain on Sunday was biblical and naturally this leads to more condensation and a generally damp atmosphere. Your review verges on rude when you personally attack Sheila who volunteers at the cafe at Leyburn. She is an absolute diamond and simply doesn’t deserve your vitriol. Why not do the decent thing and come and volunteer alongside her, show her how to make tea to your exacting standards and serve cake at the lightening speed you desire. The event received positive feedback overall on Facebook. We apologise it wasn’t your cup of tea.

 

[50002Superb]

Good on them!

 

[matt]

The timings for this are now available. Here are the times for Friday 6th December https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/se...6/0000-2359?stp=WVS&show=all&order=wtt&toc=WR

 

[Class15]

The timings for this are now available. Here are the times for Friday 6th December https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/se...6/0000-2359?stp=WVS&show=all&order=wtt&toc=WR

The yellow pen people will love the fact that 1Z18 goes via Kilburn Goods Loop !

 

[xotGD]

The yellow pen people will love the fact that 1Z18 goes via Kilburn Goods Loop !

But are they prepared to dress as elves in order to get it in the book?

 

[DerekC]

But are they prepared to dress as elves in order to get it in the book?

I am sure you can get a green anorak - and with the hood up - job done!

 

[SuspectUsual]

But are they prepared to dress as elves in order to get it in the book?

Entire families in matching pyjamas seems to be the order of the day up here