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WLLR On The Right Track For A Fantastic Future!
WHO would have
guess that 6 schoolboys playing with an old locomotive back in 1967
would lead to what is now regarded as one of the best examples of
small scale family tourist attractions in West Lancashire.
The hope is that now,
according to West Lancs. Council, that this small scale venture will
over the next few years become a major part of the development of
Tourism for the region. The West Lancashire Light Railway that runs along the
old Henry Alty clay pit, ran its annual Gala Weekend on 11 August and 12
August 2007 to celebrate its success over the last 40 years.
One of the original 6 told me that:-
“I remember the first loco was a diesel that we got for £25. I do
not think at that stage we would have known what it would develop
into. Thankfully one of the group, Jonathan had a dad, Harry, who was one of
the directors at Alty’s Brickworks and he gave us permission to lay
some track down and put our engine on. I do not know if he realised
that 40 years on we would still be running our beloved locos.”
The event at the site
not only had all the WLLR locos running, but also at had a guest
loco, that has recently been built in the UK, by Hunslet Steam,
called 'Jack Lane'.
Also attending was the Chairman of West
Lancashire District Council, Cllr Bill Cropper who before that day
never visited the railway. “I am extremely impressed with this
site. It has not only a fantastic family atmosphere, but is so
welcoming to all who venture in to see the locomotives on display.
It is also very rewarding to see these unusual industrial
locomotives still running and a tribute to the countries history. We
will do our best to help this group to develop their ideas.”
Happy Birthday WLLR, and good luck for the years to come.
To find out more visit the railways
website or log onto our
Mersey Reporter advert page.
Click
here for exclusive video
footage of our interview with West Lancashire District
Council, Cllr Bill Cropper.
(For low download speeds and mobile
phones use this
link.)
Page 1 of 5
Click
here to see how to turn a train
around.
Past reports link:-
Date:- 14 Jul 2006
Date:- 11 Dec 2006 |
