Royal Scot Locomotive Trust signs deal with Scottish Railway Preservation Society

The Royal Scot Locomotive & General Trust and the Scottish Railway Preservation Society have announced that they have formed a long-term partnership.

The partnership will see Locomotive Services Limited offer tradition Mark 1 carriages for their mainline tours, ensuring the long-term use of the SRPS’ mainline fleet of carriages.

A significant investment has been made recently for the carriages in the SRPS collection in order for them to meet the latest safety standards. This has been boosted by third parties carrying out the work to speed up the process.

Recently, some of the carriages have travelled to Barrow Hill for the work to be carried out and the first overhauled carriages are expected in service in July.

As part of the deal, Crewe-based locomotives and stock will stable at the Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway, with visiting locomotives featuring on the heritage railway’s services.

LSL will also provide locomotives and support for the SRPS’s railtours around Scotland.

“As we approach our 55th year of operation, the partnership with Royal Scot is an exciting one for the SRPS and we look forward to our passengers being able to enjoy the experience of historic railway journeys on the mainline once again in our newly overhauled carriages. Royal Scot has an impressive fleet of beautifully restored locomotives that have deep connections to Scotland and we look forward to hosting them on services on the Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway.

The arrangement also provides vital funds to assist in the SRPS’s prime purpose of restoring and preserving its significant Scottish Railway collection for future generations.”

Andrew Wells (Finance Director of the SRPS)

“It is a pleasure to be partnering with, and to be invited to operate, these SRPS heritage assets on the British mainline railway. Railworthy carriages of the ‘Mark One’ design remain un-failingly popular with travellers and the upgraded features they require to operate on the mainline in 2024 and beyond requires external finance. We are pleased to be in a position to provide this. The carriages will now be seen in operation on the mainline many years into the future”

Jeremy Hosking, chair of the Royal Scot Trust and the wider LSL Group