T.R.P.S. Report of the Council for 2005

THE SUN SHONE and Tywyn Silver Band played as His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales arrived on the footplate of locomotive No. 7 Tom Rolt to open the new Wharf Station on Wednesday, 13th. July, 2005. Accompanied by the Duchess of Cornwall he toured the Museum section of the new building where volunteers representing the divers elements of the Society were presented. After the Prince had unveiled a plaque the Royal couple “worked” the crowd assembled opposite, to the delight of the many local schoolchildren, and were photographed in front of the Royal pilot engine, No. 4 Edward Thomas. It was a day which will stand out in the long annals of the Talyllyn Railway. Unlike many Royal “openings” it was followed the same afternoon by the first admission of the public to the Museum and marked the culmination, if not quite the completion, of six years’ hard labour by a large number of members.

The offices in the new building had been occupied progressively from the start of the year, enabling the return to hostel use of Llechfan’s Blue Room and removal of the life-expired caravan. The new café, later christened the Porter’s Platter, opened to the public on 4th. March, allowing demolition of its portable predecessor just before the Royal visit.

Another notable visitor was the Right Reverend Anthony Crockett, Bishop of Bangor, who enjoyed a footplate trip on 4th. April when the Railway was largely operated by volunteers with clerical connections.

The warm friendship with our twin in Australia goes from strength to strength and your Council was pleased to send a replica Talyllyn nameplate and congratulatory certificate to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the foundation of the Puffing Billy Preservation Society.

At the 2005 Annual General Meeting, a paper requesting the production of a business plan was presented from the floor and welcomed by several officers. The Council set up a Strategy Group to pursue the idea and its first fruits appear in the Talyllyn News accompanying this Report.

Your Council has often noted the debt the Railway owes to the loyalty of many volunteers who toil self-effacingly in unglamorous roles. The Accounts accompanying this Report are the last to be prepared by Colin Roobottom, who stood down as Society Treasurer at the Annual General Meeting after an astounding forty years in office.

Traffic & Operating

The reopening of Wharf gave operating staff the challenge of preparing and running a Royal train. Those involved turned out engines and rolling stock bulled-up to perfection, and can be justifiably proud of their contribution to a day when the Railway showed itself to perfection.

Completion of the main building work had been greeted with a great sigh of relief, as shuttling empty stock to Pendre to run round was no longer necessary, the chain gang was no longer required, and, eventually, chips appeared on the café menu. There was also an impact on passenger figures: bookings were up 6.2% to 52,370, journeys up 6.4% to 98,610 (both figures including members) and traffic revenue increased by 11.1% to £310,817.

The major operating challenge was the lineside incident in October, which closed the line near Rhydyronen for almost three days. Operating and other employees and volunteers rose to the challenge with characteristic Talyllyn efficiency, organizing and running a replacement road service and dealing with out-of-position trains as well as coping with the aftermath of the incident. The response of the many members offering assistance if required was magnificent and very much appreciated.

Marketing

2005 was a landmark year in the life of the Talyllyn. Our passengers have reacted very favourably to the new Museum, Refreshment Room and Shop and there have been significant numbers making repeat visits due to the much improved amenities.

Once again, a good number of Special Events ran during the year: the Rolt Rally, two Duncan days, Victorian Week, the Have-a-Go Gala, Land Rover Rally and Carol Train. A newly formed Santa Group took over the running of the Santa Specials and these proved very popular.

Weddings, Sunday lunches, Footplate Experiences and Photographic Charters all played their part in the success of the Railway in 2005, and the Victorian Trains, with their revised itinerary and change of day, have loaded extremely well. Promoting coach and party traffic paid dividends, and it was well up from the 2004 figures. Dyfi Valley Days referral vouchers were extremely popular and traffic from this source made a useful contribution. Promotion of the new season ticket began, and sales appeared encouraging.

We received good press coverage during the year. One of our weddings was televised by HTV in March and the News showed us preparing the Railway for a new season. S4C televised the launch of a Thomas the Tank Engine CD in Welsh from the Awdry Study in the Museum and on national television, the BBC featured Race the Train in a seven-and-a-half minute segment on Countryfile.

Once again, we comfortably met the criteria to merit accreditation as a “Quality Assured Visitor Attraction” from the Wales Tourist Board, thanks not only to our excellent premises, but the ‘enthusiasm and friendliness of all the staff and volunteers encountered along the way…’

The website <www.talyllyn.co.uk> is an increasingly important element in our marketing, with over 700,000 visits a year (double the number two years ago). Finally, the timetable leaflet remains the key and, once again, we would urge everyone to help with its distribution in their part of the country: if every member was able to take just ten leaflets and hand them out to friends, family, work colleagues, casual acquaintances and complete strangers we would empty our boxes very speedily.

Shop and Catering

The major event of the year was when Wharf café moved into its new home with a much larger kitchen and increased indoor seating. Together with revamped menus, this proved an immediate success with the public, attracting local business as well as increased usage from passengers. As a result, Wharf public catering sales increased by 82% compared to 2004 with Wharf turnover overtaking Abergynolwyn for the first time. Growth at Wharf was not at the expense of Abergynolwyn though, where public takings increased by 9%, giving an overall increase in public catering sales of 38%. On the other hand, volunteer catering sales fell by 8% and a new volunteer pricing regime was introduced late in the year. Also in October, Ed Lund, who had been Catering Manager since late 1990, shortly after the temporary café arrived, became Facilities Manager, and was succeeded as Catering Manager by Lesly Hunter.

The Railway Shop has also had a successful year with an increase in sales at Wharf of 21%, giving an overall increase of 19%, more than offsetting the 12% reduction in 2004. The Shop missed the first few days of the February half-term service whilst the refurbishment of the original Wharf station building was completed, but the result was worth waiting for and much appreciated by the public. With the completion of the new building and the availability of a stock room, we have been able to commission new lines with a Talyllyn theme, and this process is continuing.

As an experiment, the Shop and café remained open daily after the end of the main season in early November until the end of the Christmas/New Year train service, reopening in early February. The results of this experiment were encouraging. The Railway Letter Service issued a new cover for the Royal opening of Wharf. We are grateful to all Shop and Catering employees and volunteers for their hard work during what proved to be a successful if tiring year.

Engineering

After a period when other work took priority, the major overhaul of No. 1 Talyllyn coinciding with a 10-year boiler examination is progressing well; new valve spindles and bridles have been made. A new rear truck manufactured for No. 3 Sir Haydn is ready for fitting, and new safety valves were constructed by a member for No. 6 Douglas/Duncan. Stronger rear springs have been fitted on No. 7 Tom Rolt to try to improve riding. It is hoped that costly boiler repair or renewal will be less frequent now that automatic dosage of water takes place in the Wharf water column. Diesel No. 5 Midlander is having the engine overhauled and the cab rebuilt. Complete rewiring of No. 10 Bryn Eglwys last winter has improved reliability.

Carriage No. 23 went back into service in 2005 after body repairs, but No. 10 was found to be suffering from severe corrosion of the continuous angle iron that supports the body. Cutting this out and replacing it with short lengths is a tedious job that continues. No. 21 was varnished and re-carpeted to carry the Royal couple. Overdue frame repairs and strengthening of Boflat wagon No. 36 will allow it to carry the crane in future.

Although the main contract for Wharf was completed as 2005 opened, finishing off the Shop and making the area fit for the Royal opening in July once again delayed jobs elsewhere on the line. However, the concrete slab carrying Brynglas platform over the stream was complemented in 2005 by renewal of the timber decking carrying the track alongside. Patch-welding was used to strengthen the beams supporting the rails, whilst a new steel beam supports the outer side of the decking and a handrail.

At Pendre, the Kearn’s horizontal borer was brought into use, and a new band saw installed in the carpentry shop. A portable lifting gantry carrying a 3-tonne hoist has been erected outside the North Carriage Shed where it can load and unload road or rail vehicles.

Health & Safety

There have been regular management inspections during the year. These identify various issues which require and receive attention; most are trivial in themselves but can lead to accident and injury if not addressed. The annual Management Safety Audit took place and the final report is awaited, though the issues raised have been noted and dealt with. Although not a railway accident, the tragic event in October raised some issues regarding our Incident Plan and has led to discussions with the police about improvements. Most of these relate to detail and format and the plan is being updated by a member with expertise in this field. On 17th. October the Railway Accident Investigation Branch came into operation, requiring reports additional to and categorized differently from those which still have to be submitted to the Railway Inspectorate. Procedures have been put in place to ensure Controllers know how to report certain incidents which now have to be reported within an hour, a much shorter timescale than before.

The legislation under which railways operate has changed. The Talyllyn currently operates under an exemption from the Railway (Safety Case) Regulations gained by submitting a risk assessment. By April 2007 this will have to be replaced by a Safety Management System. Though much of what is required for this is already in place a great deal of re-writing and cross- referencing will be required to prepare the actual document. The safe operation of the Railway requires care and diligence on the part of all involved and the various training sessions run for operating volunteers all emphasize the issue of safety.

Society Activities

The Society and Membership Committee helped to fill the long Welsh evenings in 2005 with its usual selection of barbecues, most notably the one accompanied by a large bonfire, and a New Year’s Eve Party. The A.G.M. evening entertainment centred on the second musical extravaganza: Scary Bodgings.

The Young Members’ Group converted the Blue Room in Llechfan hostel back to a bedroom in the spring, following its use as an office during Wharf Redevelopment, and undertook the refurbishment of the “upstairs” shower. Gangs of Young, and “Older Younger” Members worked hard in the cold over New Year 2006 to clear and relay part of Abergynolwyn’s point rodding, making life easier for Blockmen in the future.

The Navvies and Tracksiders groups continue to be active, making their presence noticed about the Railway. These keen under-14s have completed many a task, including tidying Abergynolwyn Station, and supplement their working parties with lively social events.

At the year end membership was 3,537, a drop of 0.9% from last year. This figure is before the subscription increases agreed at the A.G.M., which were greater than proposed by the Council, had an effect. A new membership leaflet was in preparation.

Museum and Heritage

The past year has seen the culmination of a lot of hard work in the opening of the new museum. This would not have been possible without the generosity of many Society members and Museum supporters who contributed through the Jubilee Appeal Fund, and of the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Welsh Assembly Government, the Welsh Development Agency, the Wales Tourist Board, and CyMal; sincere thanks are due to them all. Public reaction to the new Museum has been most favourable.

Admission to the new Museum is free of charge, and, although we have yet to complete a full year of the new arrangement, indications are that income from donations is keeping up with that raised by the old admission fee. A sponsored exhibit scheme has also been set up for those wishing to donate a more substantial sum.

With the clearing away of the building works, attention has turned to the south side of the line at Wharf, and the Museum’s wagon fleet and other outdoor exhibits are now arranged there. The wagons are receiving a much needed repaint, and arrangements are in train for laying more display track and the display of the weighbridge after an absence of over forty years.

The Museum is now manned whenever it is open, and a team of attendants has been assembled for this purpose. New volunteers are always welcome and full training is provided.

Report of the Honorary Treasurer

Whilst this is my first report as Society Treasurer, and Accountant to the Railway Company, since election at last year’s A.G.M., all of the credit for the accounts presented herewith must go to my predecessor Colin Roobottom who, as mentioned above, has completed this work.

Since (and before!) my election my focus has been on climbing a very steep learning curve to understand the intricacies of what is a very complex organization for its size, and also implement a new computerized accounting system and process to replace Colin’s manual records. This is a very large task, and it is now likely to be into 2007 before the greatly enhanced management reporting that will come from this system will be available.

The Railway made a loss for the 2005 year of £31,907, down from £66,793 in 2004. This result was undoubtedly influenced by the redevelopment of Wharf Station, both favourably and unfavourably.

Traffic Receipts increased by 11.1%, attributable to increased patronage as fares were not increased in the year. Operating Costs were little higher than in 2004, but there were several changes within this category. The price of coal was on average 31.5% higher than in 2004, as it increased by over 50% during the season and so far it shows no sign of returning to the previous level. On the other hand, last year’s accounts included the cost of repairing No. 4’s boiler. Other Expenses were £12,991 (12.7%) higher; while some of this relates to the transitional costs of bringing the new Wharf building into use, the cost of electricity and gas has risen in line with the general increase in energy costs.

The results of the Railway’s commercial activities appear in the Revenue Account, and more detail is given in Note 3. The Railway Shop recorded improved turnover and profit and the Catering turnover was 32% higher, showing the first benefits of the move to the new café at Wharf. Catering made a small, but hugely significant, profit compared with losses in recent years.

The net expenditure on Wharf Redevelopment is again shown separately in the Balance Sheet. This figure is unlikely to change in subsequent years unless it becomes necessary to repay an amount in respect of V.A.T. previously reclaimed as referred to in Note 13.

The Society’s income from Subscriptions was about the same as in 2004, but donations were 32.8% lower, no doubt as a result of more donations being directed to Talyllyn Holdings Ltd. to take advantage of the Gift Aid tax reclaim. Income of £1,443 from the “T.R. Tote” is also included here. Society expenditure was higher, partly because it was necessary to renew the Membership Secretaries’ computer and by some quirk the costs of five quarterly issues of the Volunteer are included.

The Society has again made a special grant of £31,907 to the Railway Company to eliminate its deficit.