Mini railway grinds to a halt after drivers go on strike following string of rows
It comes as thousands of rail commuters face yet more misery, with a two-day Arriva Rail North strike set to start tomorrow
A POPULAR mini railway has hit the buffers — after drivers went on strike.
Forty volunteers have walked out at Poole Park Railway in a row with management.
It comes as thousands of rail commuters face yet more misery, with a two-day Arriva Rail North strike set to start tomorrow.
Unpaid drivers, guards, engineers and ticket office volunteers at the Dorset attraction quit last month after a string of rows with Friends of Poole Park, which runs the miniature railway.
The railway, which first opened in 1949, has since lost thousands of pounds in business.
According to the website, the railway is currently closed for seasonal maintenance but a volunteer insisted that was just an excuse.
They said: “Issues have been brewing for months and we said enough is enough.
"Everyone agreed to down tools on the spot. More than 40 volunteers run and operate the railway and without them it can’t run.
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“The track issue is a diversion. We have had good weather lately and we have probably lost several thousands of pounds in income and disappointed lots of kids.”
Friends of Poole Park, which won the contract to operate the railway last year, has posted a plea for new volunteers on Facebook. Landlord Poole council confirmed the railway was suspended last month after a minor derailment and that a section of track needed to be replaced.
A spokesman said that the railway’s operators had until the middle of next month to resolve the situation or the contract would be put out to tender.