East Lancashire Railway: £12m restoration plan approved

A £12m plan to turn East Lancashire Railway (ELR) into the "best heritage railway in the UK" has been approved by Bury Council.

Launched in 1987, the heritage service attracted about 200,000 visitors annually before the pandemic.

The fund will be used to build a locomotive shed, workshops, training facilities and a carriage shed at Buckley Wells depot.

ELR chairman Mike Kelly said the decision was "fantastic news".

The East Lancashire Railway

• The railway, which runs between Heywood and Rawtenstall, was - from the 19th Century - part of the route between Manchester and Leeds

• Its final commuter service ran in 1972 after significant rail cutbacks nationwide following the controversial Beeching report in the 1960s

• A charity to preserve the line was set up, with the first heritage service running in 1987

An ELR spokeswoman said the £12m plan would also fund the restoration of the Grade II-listed locomotive workshop, which was built in 1857 and is the oldest engineering workshop in the world still in operation.

Mr Kelly said: "I have every confidence in the ELR's determination to be the best heritage railway in the UK."

He said the council's approval "sends a very strong message of support [...] to our volunteers and staff, knowing they have the future which they have worked so hard for, especially through the dark days of Covid".

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