T.R.P.S. Report of the Council for 2000

HALF A CENTURY of achievement was celebrated in October 2000 with a dinner to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Society's foundation, and hence of successful railway preservation throughout the world. It was a very happy occasion and it gave us particular pleasure that a number of survivors from that small beginning were able to honour us with their presence. Among them was Sonia Rolt, widow of one of our founders, who unveiled a new painting commissioned from Phil Hawkins for our Golden Jubilee. Our Australian twin, the Puffing Billy Railway, was represented as we were at their centenary celebrations two months later.

The Golden Jubilee Committee organized the dinner and numerous other celebratory events continuing through 2001. Sadly, one of its members who had contributed much hard work, Joy Bowles, was taken seriously ill on a special train in May 2000 and died on 25th. June, 2001 without recovering normal health.

Purchase of the Abergynolwyn car park and picnic area, from a Snowdonia National Park no longer wishing to hold such land, has secured facilities essential to our operation and enabled us to improve the first impression the prospective passenger there gains of the Railway.

The Honorary Secretary enjoyed the opportunity to put the Talyllyn message across to the International Truck [i.e. narrow-gauge railway] Summit in Toyama, Japan in June. Associated with this was an order for ?4,364 of Shop goods.

Having handed over as Managing Director a year before, Maurice Wilson decided to stand down from the Board in December 2000 and has been succeeded by Roger Whitehouse. We all owe Maurice a debt of gratitude for the work he has undertaken since first becoming a director in 1983, and in particular for his general management role between 1992 and 1999.

Progress towards rebuilding Wharf Station has been continual but at times frustratingly slow. The generosity of members to the appeal fund has been overwhelming, but we are still dependent on grant aid to make the work viable and must therefore proceed at a pace dictated by external forces.

Traffic & Operating

The 2000 season started with traffic figures slightly above those of 1999, but from June onwards business declined slightly; moreover the improvement notable in most recent autumns was nullified by the fuel crisis and floods, so that the final total of passenger bookings was 0.9% lower at 47,680 compared to 48,125 in 1999. Passenger journeys were 89,067 which was less than 0.5% lower than 1999's total of 89,378. Traffic receipts were up 4.6% due to fare increases.

A new timetable was introduced for the early summer and autumn periods in June/July and September. This gave four departures daily, and had the novel feature of 1 hour turnround times for trains at Wharf. During the extremely wet weather at the end of October one day's services had to be cancelled due to flooding of the line at Cynfal. Hard work by staff and volunteers managed to get the line passable in time for the 1140 train on the following day.

A number of training events were held, including two weekends of training for diesel locomotive drivers. A training weekend was also arranged specifically for younger members.

Marketing

From the 2000 season round-trip tickets became day rovers (as did return dog tickets for the pleasure of punsters) and this flexibility has been well received by passengers. The new walks leaflets also encouraged them to view the Railway as more than just a train ride to "pretty much nowhere" and back. The extension of Abergynolwyn refreshment room enabled it to be licensed for civil weddings and the first ceremony was held in March, the ambience and associated train being greatly appreciated by the happy couple and their party.

On 1st. July a train ran to celebrate the life of Sir Henry Haydn Jones, without whose commitment to the Railway throughout his tenure as owner and General Manager there would have been nothing for us to preserve. Elfyn Llwyd, Sir Haydn's successor as the local Member of Parliament, joined us for the occasion and about fifteen of Sir Haydn's descendants and relatives travelled on the train from Wharf.

Inhabitants of Tywyn have benefited from reduced fares on occasional Residents' Days. A limited degree of resistance to fares was detected amongst our wider customer base and a decision reached in July not to increase most fares for 2001. We became aware of Peter Sam's impending withdrawal from service in time for some clever manipulation to show No 6 as Duncan on the new timetable which went to press at the end of August. This also features a new map, again giving greater emphasis to the Railway's hinterland, and advertises the Vintage Train as a special service with photographic opportunities and a slightly enhanced fare. The Marketing Committee would like to thank all those who have helped the new timetable distribution co-ordinator, especially Tywyn Area Group which also donated ?500 towards purchasing some new timetable holders.

We have had further good press coverage thanks to the Press Officer while our Webmaster continues to provide an expanding fund of information to Internet users worldwide. Some foreign language leaflets have been updated but a more thorough review is underway. For many years the T.R. set its face against Footplate Experience Courses; however, it can be a lucrative market and it was finally agreed that we should enter it at the high-value end with a made-to-measure programme for each participant. The first course was held before the main 2001 running season and greatly enjoyed by the customers.

On 8th. February, 2001 a special train marked the anniversary of the Company being handed over to the Society, local guests being entertained to a buffet at Abergynolwyn.

Following Council deliberations the Marketing Committee has been given new terms of reference, and some new members; it has appointed designated co-ordinators for special events and created working groups to handle specific tasks. For various reasons the Marketing Strategy group, set up following a talk by a Wessex Area Group sponsored marketing professional, was suspended after its second meeting, but several useful lessons learned were incorporated in the 2001 timetable.

Shop & Catering

Commercial receipts were up on the previous year in both the shop and cafes. The shop also benefited from the windfall order from Japan. Takings per passenger in the shop were up 4%, slightly above inflation. In the cafes Wharf takings per passenger were up 2%, suggesting a slight drop in volume, but Abergynolwyn takings were up by 14% over the previous year. This is due to the new extension, in its first full year of operation, providing more seating capacity and hence encouraging people to enter the building. The fact that the return fare is now a day-rover ticket has encouraged people to break their journey at Abergynolwyn. About half the food purchases at Wharf are by volunteers, and the reduced prices are compensated for in the volunteer subsidy made to the catering department. Volunteer input in both shop and cafe is limited to a small number of loyal helpers. It is an area that would benefit greatly from more volunteers, even if they can only do a few hours in the busy times.

2000 was the last full season for which Teresa Cox was in charge of the Shop and her eight years at the helm have been marked by a cheerful welcome and remarkable ability to encourage customers to part painlessly with more money than they had planned. In May 2001 she handed over to Cherryl Statham whose tenure has enjoyed a promising start.

Engineering

November Outdoor Week saw 860ft of track relaid east of Brynglas in a highly mechanized operation, using a skid-steer loader and dumper truck to dig out the ballast bed through Tadpole cutting. Panels of new track were assembled by the blockpost and rolled in on skates. Another 466ft of track was replaced during February 2001 Outdoor Week on the curve east of Rhydyronen, again using a loader. The ex-Vale of Rheidol rail laid here required much crowing. An emergency task on 30th. October was excavating large amounts of stone and debris washed down Cynfal stream after a flash flood the previous evening.

New hardwood buffer beams have been obtained for No 1 Talyllyn. No 3 Sir Haydn passed a 10-year boiler exam successfully last winter and the boiler was retubed. No 4 Peter Sam/Edward Thomas was withdrawn from service on 17th. March, 2001 when the boiler certificate ran out. There has been a generous response to the appeal fund for a new boiler. No 7 Tom Rolt had repairs to the chimney base during reassembly after a hydraulic test. In late August 2000 all six steam locomotives were available for peak service for the first time ever.

No 5 Midlander required gearbox repairs in the summer after a bearing failed in February 2000. No 8 Merseysider is functional but still not quite finished off after a major rebuild. The damaged diesel engine off No 10 Bryn Eglwys has been repaired, bench-tested and installed.

No 13 carriage was air-braked by October 2000, leaving only No 14 to be dealt with when a major rebuild of the body to replace much rotten timber is complete. No 21 required replacement of rotten timber along the south cantrail during the past winter.

Mains power was finally switched on at Dolgoch during October, solving the problem of inadequate solar power to drive the fan ventilating the toilets. During early Spring 2001, Manweb's contractors cut down the Leylandii alongside the car park and picnic site at Abergynolwyn, making the station's existence far more visible to passing motorists.

Health & Safety

The Railway continues to pay close attention to Health & Safety matters. Following changes to the T.R. Co. Board, the Managing Director assumed responsibility for H. & S.

The 2000 annual Health and Safety Management Audit was again conducted by our Safety Adviser and for the second time his report showed a small decline in our overall mark, although we still remained in the VERY GOOD category. We were graded at 78.9% compared with 80.2% previously. A total of 1876 points from a total possible of 2365 was scored. This further fall is disappointing, although not entirely unexpected as continual progress has to be made to retain an overall mark from one year to the next.

Areas where the Talyllyn has to improve include housekeeping, stacking and storage. Although there has been improvement in these areas, problems persist and stem in part from the acute shortage of space in all departments. However, the report did highlight that a considerable amount of redundant stock was kept and that in places ordering policy failed to take account of storage constraints. These and other matters in the report are receiving attention.

Society Activities

Area Groups continued with their important role during the year, promoting both the Railway and Society and raising funds totalling [figure to be added]. However, some have recognized that, although they have an important part to play in the Society, their core activities have changed over the last 50 years; some Areas are thriving, but others are struggling. Therefore, work has now begun to assist them to determine their future role and how best it can be achieved.

Society membership increased by 1.6% on the previous year with 3,716 members at the year end. Members at the Annual General Meeting displayed their confidence in the strength of the Society by increasing subscriptions beyond the level recommended by the Council; this has given our income a welcome boost in early 2001 without unduly deterring renewals. More direct approaches to attract new members have been made, the most positive effect being achieved from enclosing a membership leaflet in the December Talyllyn News.

The evening social after the 2000 A.G.M. was the last of five organized by the same team and was again hugely enjoyable. The show drew the comment from a member also involved in standard-gauge preservation that his other railway would not have the young members to take such a prominent part. Our thanks are due to all those who put a great deal of time and effort into all the social occasions which help to unite the Talyllyn family.

The Members' Activities Committee has been renamed to the Society and Membership Committee (S.& M.), with wider terms of reference covering all aspects of the recruitment and retention of members and volunteers.

Museum & Heritage

In the museum, a photographic display to celebrate 50 years of preservation was opened on 1st. May 2000 by Professor Sutherland, the Lord Lieutenant of Gwynedd. Mounted on the mezzanine level of the museum, the display was assembled from the Company and Society archives and put together by a small group of local members. An interesting addition to the collection has been a set of four nameplates Topsy, Nipper, Midge and Dickie from the narrow gauge locomotives which worked in the L.& N.W.R. Crewe works. Outside, our collection of historic T.R. wagons has been extended by the appearance of the rebuilt covered van, which formerly served as a shelter at Rhydyronen, and a further slate wagon, this time a braked two-bar version. This also featured on the T.R.P.S. stand at the National Model Railway Exhibition.

Behind the scenes work has continued in the production of additional multilingual labels for exhibits and the entry of the museum catalogue into a computer database. This will include photographs, and will allow researchers to view the collection while it is removed for the Wharf redevelopment project. Alan Holmes retired as a museum trustee after many years of service, and Anthony Coulls has been appointed by Council in his place. Winston McCanna has also joined the trustees as a co-opted member. With the approaching prospect of Wharf redevelopment, there will be plenty of work to do in presenting the collection in the new building.

Report of the Honorary Treasurer

The Railway again lost money during the 2000 season, ?41,688 against ?30,719 for 1999. Traffic Receipts increased by 4%, fares having been increased. Operating Costs also increased, by 6.4%, the main increase being ?11,098 in Maintenance of Ways & Works spread over a number of items within that heading. Other Expenses in total were 6.8% higher than last year, each item under that heading showing an increase.

The Revenue Account shows the results of the Railway's commercial activities in total; Note 3 provides more details, split between Shop and Catering. Turnover in both sections increased, and in the case of Catering includes ?7,850 in respect of subsidised sales of refreshments to staff and volunteers; Cost of Sales is reduced by ?2,900 in respect of materials used for the supply of free hot drinks. Shop turnover includes ?5,102 relating to the very profitable Railway Letter Service.

Engineering turnover and profit show a reduction; fewer air pumps were supplied to other railways than in 1999.

Miscellaneous Income consists mainly of rental income from the aerials at Abergynolwyn and the net commission from the rail ticket agency of ?2,400, reduced this year by a bad debt which had to be written off.

The only notable changes in Fixed Assets are expenditure of ?23,070 on professional fees and planning costs relating to the proposed redevelopment of Wharf Station and final costs of ?5,367 in respect of Abergynolwyn Station extension.

The Society's Subscription income was a little higher but Donations returned to a more normal level (without the benefit of a legacy); they inevitably fluctuate from year to year.

The Society has again made a special grant (of ?41,688) to the Railway Company to avoid carrying forward a deficit in the Company's Balance Sheet.

Last modified on 9th. July, 2001 by John S. Robinson (Secretary@talyllyn.co.uk),