Boris

I know, right? You must have followed me into a few, this was todays effort : Logging on whilst logging on....

When I think about the number of people on the NYMR who have later been convicted as nonces it makes me shiver. One was that bad they got 10 years behind bars. They've got way better at weeding them out thankfully.

Happened in the late 90s too.

We all know what the fastest steam engine in the world is:

Quite feasibly, all the platforms at Scarborough were permissive as they are now.

A not uncommon wheeze amongst TF staff was to wipe the cups clean and fill them with supermarket tea/powdered milk and sell them to the customers multiple times to earn a little more money

Says the person that just declared the railways deserve all the passenger rage they get. Who do you think takes the brunt of the passenger rage? Railway staff do not go to work to be threatened, assaulted or abused. It's never acceptable. Also some facts and figures for you, since the withdrawl of the mk5 fleet TPE has gone from 30-120 cancellations per day to 5 or so. Or yesterday they cancelled 2 trains, Northern cancelled 240, today they have 3 showing as cancelled whilst Northern show 238. TPE have massively got their act together recently and are starting to look like a good reliable operator.

In this case they asked why the railway was in breach of its published disciplinary procedure and by this point the suspensions had gone on for 4 months, and also queried certain line items on the accounts that people didn't want to answer questions on because its a whole other can of worms.

I know the person involved and they have done nothing of the sort, its literally to gag them.

Op-Ed from the Yorkshire Post - I think this has gone way beyond any sort of mediation now. After al open ended suspensions have been the preferred method of the NYMR for quietly getting rid of people they don't like for a while now, they suspend you and then immediately delete your account to both of the companies official communication portals to volunteers. Value of North Yorkshire Moors Railway volunteers mustn’t be forgotten - The Yorkshire Post says Heritage railways have a unique character that makes people so fond of them. It is why so many volunteers offer to give countless hours of their own time to keep these historic assets operational. The Yorkshire Post By The Yorkshire Post Published 16th Dec 2023, 16:45 GMT It is also reflected in the interest in the goings on at North Yorkshire Moors Railway (NYMR), which earlier this year disciplined seven long-serving volunteers. NYMR feared that a 60-strong group of unpaid workers at Levisham Station were operating independently of management and their activities were suspended last summer. Now those volunteers have hit back refuting the catalogue of allegations made against them. Whatever the reality is, this whole sorry saga does nobody any good. People in Yorkshire are rightly proud of NYMR and don’t want to see this drawn out. The whole saga has been mired by a lack of transparency. Ultimately, that’s what people want - transparency. But above and beyond, mediation needs to be the priority between the volunteers and the management of NYMR. All of those who have been disgruntled by this saga need to get around the table and clear the air. What must not be forgotten is the value of volunteers. Without their passion, assets such as heritage railways would not be where they are today. That is certainly the case with NYMR. Some people who have contacted The Yorkshire Post have been involved since the 1960s and 70s. The transition from a Beeching-mothballed mainline to the preserved railway it has become today, which has captured the imagination of so many people, wouldn’t have been possible without their efforts. NYMR’s management needs to ensure it engages with these volunteers

I mean the fact that they suspended someone for asking awkward questions speaks volumes about the management culture within the NYMR.

This is the follow-up article: North Yorkshire Moors Railway volunteer group 'effectively disbanded' following six-month suspension of work and ugly dispute with management It seems almost ridiculous that goings-on at a respected heritage railway have to be discussed under cloak of anonymity for fear of reprisals. Yet this is now the case at the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, which earlier this year was forced to discipline seven long-serving volunteers – one of whom has been reported to police – over an ugly saga at Levisham Station, where it was feared that a 60-strong group of unpaid workers were operating independently of management. Their activities were suspended last summer and they have barely returned since. The accusations, revealed by The Yorkshire Post last month, were myriad and often bizarre – an official report published by the railway included details of a poster being defaced, locks superglued and keys removed. The volunteers at Levisham – who call themselves ‘Wombles’ – were alleged to have been illicitly charging fees for the use of a NYMR-owned cottage intended as overnight accommodation and to have carried out work on a turntable without permission. There has subsequently been outcry, and several members of the railway, some of whom have been involved since the 1960s and 70s, when it was in the embryonic stages of the transition from a Beeching-mothballed mainline between Pickering and Whitby to the preserved railway it was to become, have contacted The Yorkshire Post to refute the allegations made by senior management. They speak of wider discontent and a culture clash between experienced enthusiasts and a corporate establishment which has come to dominate operations. Fifty years ago, heritage railways were the domain of hobbyists, who in the early years had to re-lay lifted track, restore carriages, source locomotives and then operate services themselves, acting as driver, fireman, guard, signalman, stationmaster and more. Naturally, this state of affairs has evolved over time as health and safety restrictions and professional obligations have come to the fore. The NYMR is now run by paid staff, many with experience in the rail sector, with the support of a vast army of volunteers. It is a tourism behemoth within the North York Moors National Park, drawing in visitors who, for the past 15 years, have been able to travel all the way to Whitby, beyond the original Grosmont terminus, on steam trains thanks to an agreement with Network Rail that depends upon a commitment to modern safety standards. So it perhaps unsurprising that the first generation of volunteers are now starting to drift away, some through ill health, others because they simply no longer relate to what the railway has become. At Levisham, one life member with experience dating back to the 1970s said that the volunteer group has now effectively disbanded, as the mass suspension invoked in June has never been lifted. They have met socially since then, but most have not set foot on Levisham’s platforms since. The tearoom they ran is closed and access to the cottage they had enjoyed as grace-and-favour accommodation for 40 years has been revoked while renovations take place. "Nobody from the NYMR has ever spoken to the wider volunteer group. There was no due diligence (before action was taken which resulted in the suspensions). Things have changed a lot and we feel there is an endgame, a bigger plan, but we don’t know what it is. It seems they just don’t want the group to exist any more. They set a trap and we fell into it.” The source adds that the group – who were ‘hands on’ and completed numerous projects themselves – regularly reported their work to head office, and were not part of an ongoing dialogue advising them not to carry out certain jobs. "There was no advice along the way, we were just left to carry on, then things came to a head and they suspended all work. We were given three days’ notice to vacate the cottage. The suspension was initially for a month, but we’ve heard nothing from the railway since then.” Those familiar with the line may wonder why other volunteer groups at stations such as Goathland and Grosmont have not been targeted in the same way. Advertisement Hide Ad "They are not as large in number, and we worked differently – we did everything ourselves. We’d tackle the permanent way, anything really.” The NYMR’s investigation report into Levisham, which was passed to The Yorkshire Post, confirmed that five volunteers had been either banned or ordered to retrain, but since its publication, a further two have been singled out and disciplined. "One of the original five, who was accused of threatening behaviour, turned out to be a case of mistaken identity, so they banned another man instead – yet his suspension has never been lifted. The seventh was a woman who spoke passionately in defence of us at a meeting in September. "As my work has been suspended, I consider myself effectively suspended. This isn’t just friction between one or two people on each side, it’s become railway policy to get rid of the group. The group is finished. Our blog has been taken offline, we’ve had to pass our donations account back to the railway under veiled threats of police involvement. "It’s gone too far now. Quite a lot of the Wombles will just walk away. We don’t know what the future is for the station. The management will fix things that break, and they’ve been cutting the grass, but the weighbridge and tearoom are closed. It’s an attack on all of us.” His concerns are echoed by a representative of the Levisham Station Group, who wrote to The Yorkshire Post following the publication of our original article in November. His letter was co-signed on behalf of all the suspended volunteers. It read: “A forward plan of works has always been presented by the group to the management and agreed upon. For last 30 years any works we have done have only been done within this authorised plan. “If the management had found fault in our actions why did they never discuss or even raise these concerns? None of the management team, senior or middle, have come to Levisham Station to discuss any concerns they had. To interpret their views we had to rely on emails - sent by us to them - which we have never received acknowledgements for, let alone replies to. Advertisement Hide Ad “As the report concludes, there are many issues that should be dealt with by the leadership and followed though.” Two married couples who are part of the group also wrote to our editor, and have signed their names. Tony and Janice Leary and Malcolm and Doreen Townend have volunteered together for 17 years. Their letter stated: “No discussions were ever held between management and the whole station group before these suspensions were made. If they had been then the problems could have been resolved and a way forward found. "During our years of service we have found the whole of Levisham Station group to be friendly, supportive and caring – that is the main reason we kept volunteering there for 17 years. The station group have assisted other station groups with several projects over these years and been dedicated to the railway. Many other Levisham volunteers have decades of service to the railway without ever being told of any problems.” A Yorkshire Post reader and supporter of NYMR from the Whitby area also contacted The Yorkshire Post to express his concerns. Ian Wilkin wrote: “I was shocked at the way these volunteers were treated by management and concerned that they were not given the opportunity to present their version of events. Most of the individuals who have been banned/suspended have no idea why this has happened and have had no opportunity discuss this with management. "The issues here highlight a wider problem. Volunteers play a major role in the day to day running of this country, giving their time and expertise in a whole range of roles. Unlike employees, volunteers have no trade union representation and are not protected by employment legislation. This leaves them vulnerable to mistreatment and bullying by management and full-time employees. "Reputations have been shredded, mental health issues have arisen, long-term friendships have been strained and police time is being wasted. These volunteers should remain innocent until sufficient evidence is provided to find them guilty. "The current management regime at the railway seem to have forgotten that the railway was set up by volunteers in the late 1960s, with many of these people dedicating most of their life and spare time, over many years, making the railway what it is today. These newer staff have scrapped the original ethos which built the railway and are now scrapping the volunteers who helped to create it. "The heritage steam railway is being transformed into a multi-million pound theme park with little regard for the original aims of the hard-working individuals who rescued it from oblivion in the late 1960s and early 70s.” What does the North Yorkshire Moors Railway say it will do next? When asked, the NYMR management’s spokesperson said it had ‘declined the offer’ from seven volunteers to work for two years, after which they can submit a renewed application. A further meeting with the wider Levisham Station Group will be held in January, where an update on the work suspension is expected to be given. Advertisement Hide Ad The NYMR said that in future, volunteers at all stations will operate ‘within a framework agreed with their staff point of contact’. The cottage that became the subject of dispute between the management and volunteers is currently being renovated, but will be available again to all ‘eligible’ volunteers in future. . Related topics:North Yorkshire Moors RailwayVolunteersWhitbyNetwork Rail

Unlikely, I'm not involved with the Moors any more, family life and modelling!

I wish I could remove the smell of kippers from my kitchen as fast as you removed his smell from the forum!

Santa Cruise

That's an interesting collection of stuff behind that D20. A bit more up to date, newly reliveried TPE 185111 which was unveiled today at Hull Pagron.

Not really, no.

This seems to be a core of the NYMR operation too, the issue the NYMR has found is that once Whitby running became the expectation of the passengers secondary spend went off a cliff edge, you are taking passengers to Whitby to unload their wallets in the shops there. Places like the Valley have the right idea of keeping people on the railway all day and getting folks to spend more money with the railway.

Most of the above is true for the NYMR too. And for Llangollen but we saw what happened there not so long ago and it wasn't the end of the world, I think its 4 preserved railway/preservation societies went bust since the start of covid but we haven't seen that much of a shift in the landscape but I feel it is coming, the price of everything is going up, people are generally busier now and the biggest blow is folks retiring later - the newly retired being a historically good source of labour for preserved railways for years. Hell, you've even for the National Collection routinely disposing of assets now

I think some of you are missing the point a little, preserved railways are not public transport, a lot of them are an expensive day out. I must admit £63 at Swanage isn't bad for a family ticket and compares well with the SVR at £75, but factor in food, souvenirs, parking & fuel you can probably add another £40-50 onto that and it you can't do many of those a year. Don't forget enthusiasts aren't really the target market of preserved railways, its holidaymakers & daytrippers. I've never been to Swanage so can't comment on it but I went to the SVR with 4 adults and 4 children and it cost me the thick end of £200 but we stayed on the railway all day, explored most of the stations and had a brilliant day overall.

No, its been the amount of complaints about the noise from local residents and the terrible reliability, availability is supposed to be around 11/13 and has frequently been around 4-5/13

The NYMR has launched something similar with a slightly different tone but including the phrase "to allow us to reopen next Spring" although they are styling it as covering coal and other basic expenses: https://www.nymr.co.uk/pages/category/piglets-journey The difference being the NYMR has a massive wage bill to meet to plus spent £100,000 last year on "staff terminations" which is a lot.

My favourite is the ECS move that was supposed to be going to Edinburgh and ended up in Scarborough