As well as stunning photography of steam locomotives and electric trams, all key dates and special events on the Island’s railways are highlighted in the calendar, available from the Welcome Centre at Douglas Sea Terminal, priced £5 (Tel: 01624 662525).

The photographs were selected from images taken of this year’s events, some of which were entered as part of a competition run by IoM Railways. The overall winner, Steve Chapple, of Port Erin, submitted December’s image of Santa Trains – No.10 GH Wood and No.13 Kissack double header out of Castletown. His prize is a footplate ride on the steam railway next year.

IoM Railways’ photograph competition will be repeated next year. Details are printed on the calendars, which will also be available from Douglas, Castletown and Port Erin stations when the Santa trains are running on 3, 4, 10, 11 and 17 December.

Richard Little, Marketing Manager for IoM Public Transport, said: ‘The Island’s railways are fortunate in having a huge fan base and we are grateful for their photographic efforts that have enabled us to publish this year’s calendar. At £5 it makes a good stocking filler while another excellent Christmas present is either a beginner or intermediate driving experience on the Manx Electric Railway.’

For more details of driving experiences and bookings contact marieannebridges@gov.im or phone (01624) 662525.

Planned events for next season build on the success of this year by repeating popular specials including the Rail Ale and Rolling Stock event (28 September) and Teddy Bears’ Picnic (26 August). New events include a Wizards’ Express with a Harry Potter theme (31 March – 1 April). By kind permission of Warner Brothers and J K Rowling, IoM Junior Achievement are hosting a day of Harry Potter inspired, fun-filled activities at Castletown to provide a great day out for all the family and raise funds for charity.

The successful Island At War weekend returns 18-19 August while the Victorian Extravaganza is repeated on 30 June and 1 July at Laxey. Popular Summit dining experiences recommence with Seven Kingdoms lunches from 8 April (Easter Sunday) and Sunset Dinners from 9 May.

Hon Tim Crookall MHK, Minister for Community, Culture and Leisure, said: ‘The Isle of Man is fortunate to have retained its unrivalled network of Victorian steam and electric railways, and they continue to delight both visitors and residents. Significant ongoing investment has ensured track and stock are being maintained and restored while special events aimed at all ages have proved increasingly popular. We still have the popular Santa trains to run this year and I look forward to the varied 2012 calendar of events building on the success of recent years.’

IoM Railways event highlights for 2012 include:

• 14 February: Valentines Love Train
  A romantic journey on the steam railway

• 25 February : Winter Photography on the Steam Railway
  Unique opportunity for winter photography in the steam railway yard

• 3 March: Musical Gala
  Travel by steam railway for a unique evening of Old Time Music Hall entertainment at the Erin Arts Centre, Port Erin. On board, enjoy a range of drinks and snacks from our bar and sing along to the classics with some of the performers you will see on stage later that evening.

• 18 March: Thanks Mum
  Say ‘Thanks Mum’ this Mother’s Day and treat her to lunch on the steam railway.

• 31 March & 1 April: Wizards’ Express
  Climb aboard the Wizards’ Express from Douglas to Castletown and enjoy fun filled activities inspired by the Harry Potter films. A great day out for all the family to help raise money for Charity; Junior Achievement.
  Warner Bros Entertainment and J.K. Rowling are not responsible for this event but, subject to conditions, have kindly granted Junior Achievement permission to use the Harry Potter trademark and other materials.

• 7 to 9 April: Rush Hour on the Railways
  This Easter celebrate the Rush Hour on the Railways, three days of enhanced services on the Island’s Steam Railway, including steam workshop tours and great photo opportunities.

• 8 April: Easter Bunny
  The Easter Bunny will be at Laxey Station handing out free eggs to those travelling by tram. Continue up Snaefell for lunch at the Summit.

• 4 to 6 May: Rail Ale to Real Ale
  Ride the Rail Ale train to the festival of real ale at the Falcon’s Nest in Port Erin

• 26 & 27 May: Swinging 60s
  Ride the tram to Laxey and step back to the 60s, with entertainment, music, memorabilia and vehicles from the era.

• 17 June: Dad’s Day Out
  Treat Dad to a great day out on the Manx Electric Railway

• 30 June & 1 July
  A Victorian Extravaganza!
  A magnificent celebration on the unique Victorian Manx Electric Railway, with entertainment from the Travelling Museum of Curiosities and Wonderment and Laxey Fair.

• 25 to 29 July: Manx Heritage Transport Festival
  Five days of vintage transport will delight visitors to the Island in July. The Manx Heritage Transport Festival features steam and electric railways, vintage bikes, classic cars, buses and more.

• 18 & 19 August: Island at War on the Steam Railway
  Wartime 1940s on the Steam Railway, watch out for the spy!

• 26 August: Teddy Bears’ Picnic with the Steam Railway
  If you ride down on the train today, you’re in for a big surprise,
  If you ride down on the train today, you will not believe your eyes,
  For every child under sixteen, who brings a teddy travels for free
  Because today’s the day the Teddy Bears have their picnic.

• 8 September: A Night at the Opera
  Board the steam train at Douglas and relax with a glass from our on-board bar, as you travel in style to an exclusive night of opera at the Erin Arts Centre (black tie event).

• 8 & 9 September: Family Fun Weekend on the Railways
  Douglas Steam Railway station will be a hub of activity, with bouncy castles, slides, magicians and free rides on the Wicked Wickham, vintage bus and our open carriages.

• 28 September: Rolling Stock
  To celebrate the end of summer we will be repeating our sell out Rolling Lunch and Rail Ale trains.

• 26 to 28 October: Hop-tu-Naa Ghost trains
  Ride the Ghost Train to the Castle of the Cursed or learn about some Manx folklore and visit Jinny the Witch and friends at Cregneash

• 3 November: Winter photography on the Manx Electric Railway
  Unique opportunity for winter photography on the Manx Electric Railway.

• 5 November: Ride the Rocket
  Ride the Rocket Express to Port Erin Fireworks display

• 1, 2, 8, 9 and 15 December
  Santa Trains to the Christmas Castle Kingdom
  Santa trains will take you to visit Santa in his Christmas Kingdom at Castle Rushen, where you can then go on to enjoy the Castletown Christmas Market

• 29 December: Blow Away the Cobwebs
  Re-fresh and re-vitalise yourself after Christmas with a brisk journey on the steam railway.

For all events and latest news, see the events page of the website: www.iombusandrail.info or follow them on facebook: www.facebook.com/isleofmanrailways

Source: Department of Community, Culture and Leisure

• Manx Electric Railway – Trams 14-19
  

• Manx Electric Railway – Trams 20-29
  

• Manx Electric Railway – Trams 30-33
  

• Manx Electric Railway – Trailers
  

• Manx Electric Railway – Workscars (and some general views)
  

• DCT Horsetram 135
  

• GGR
  

• Great Laxey Mine Railway
  

• IMR
  

• MER
  

• SMR
  

The highly popular Valentine’s Love Train was the first of many special events to be run this year and popular events such as Pie in the Sky, Teddy Bears’ Picnic and Hop-tu-Naa ghost trains will all be returning as well as the TT commuter trains and an extension of the summer night trains to Castletown. 2011 will also see the introduction of brand new events such as ‘A Victorian Extravaganza!’ and ‘Island at War’.

Bookings for dining experiences will soon be available at Douglas Steam Railway Station.

The Steam Railway starts the season off with a more frequent service than last year; with regular scheduled services soon starting on each of the three main railways.

• Saturday 12th March Isle of Man Steam Railway
• Saturday 19th March Manx Electric Railway
• Saturday 16th April Snaefell Mountain Railway

The Manx Electric and Snaefell Mountain Railways will continue to offer scenic transport to the North as well as unique dining experiences at the newly refurbished Snaefell Summit Restaurant.

Hon David Cretney MHK, Minister for Community, Culture and Leisure commented:

“Looking at the new Railways timetable, it is great to see the return of many of last year’s popular events, as well as the introduction of some exciting new ones for 2011.”

For timetable services, special event information and money saving multi-journey ticket information pick up a 2011 Railway Timetable from Douglas Railway Station, the Welcome Centre, or visit www.iombusandrail.info.

A Victorian Extravaganza!
A celebration of the Victorian Era on the Isle of Man
• 2nd and 3rd July
• based around Laxey Tram Station
• Still in the planning stage but is likely to involve
• Displays of Victorian memorabilia,
• Actors in period costume
• Victorian entertainments such as traditional punch and Judy shows, silver bands etc
• Competitions for the best dressed in period costume.
• Working with other government departments to provide workshops and transport to and from The Grove Museum

Island at War
• 1940s War time with Isle of Man Railways
• 20th and 21st August (Weekend before Grand Prix week)
• Based at Douglas Steam Railway station
• Still in planning stage but should involve:
• displays of 1940’s military and civilian vehicles and machinery
• Actors in period costume
• Period entertainment with appropriate music and bands
• Period food and menus at the Tickethall
• VE Day tea and cake stall

Source: Department of Community, Culture and Leisure

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 5,200 times in 2010. That’s about 13 full 747s.

In 2010, there were 10 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 17 posts. There were 25 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 90mb. That’s about 2 pictures per month.

The busiest day of the year was August 3rd with 74 views. The most popular post that day was Downloads.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were news.bbc.co.uk, blickpunktstrab.twoday.net, tramshop.wordpress.com, tram.startpagina.nl, and 009dutch.nl.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for jurby transport museum, isle of man trams, isle of man railway map, manx electric railway, and isle of man map.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

Downloads October 2010

Jurby Transport Museum February 2010

2010 Timetable & Other Events October 2010
1 comment

MER & SMR Fleet List August 2010

Queens Pier Tramway (Ramsey) December 2007

The Steam Railway starts its 2011 service on Saturday 12th March and kicks the season off with a four train service instead of two. 2011′s summer timetable features an extension of the late night trains to Castletown; these will start on the 28th July and run every Thursday until the 1st September. Other changes include the last departure from Douglas departing ten minutes later for 2011 and the removal of Friday services during quieter periods at the start and towards the end of the season.

The Manx Electric Railway and the Snaefell Mountain Railway start their 2011 services on Saturday 19th March. The Electric Railway finishes on Sunday 6th November and the Snaefell Railway on the 2nd October. Snaefell Sunset Dinners will continue on Wednesdays throughout the summer within our newly refurbished Summit Hotel Cafe, but a new addition for 2011 is the availability of these popular dinners on Fridays. These will start on Wednesday the 15th and Friday 17th June and will have late night trams departing from Derby Castle and Ramsey. As with the Steam Railway timetable, during quieter periods at the start and towards the end of the season there will be no Friday services on the Electric Railway.

2011 will also see the continuation of popular events such as ‘Rush Hour on the Railways’, ‘Teddy Bears’ Picnic’ and the recent ‘Santa Trains’, but there will also be the introduction of exciting new events such as ‘Island at War’, a 1940′s WWII adventure and a ‘Victorian Extravaganza!’, a celebration of the Victorian era here on the Island. Dates for special events are marked with a + on each of the rail timetables.

Hon David Cretney MHK, Minister for Community, Culture and Leisure commented: “2011 will be an exciting time on the Island’s Heritage Railways, the new events launched this year have been a great success and 2011 looks like that we can expect more great achievements from Isle of Man Railways.”

Hard copies of the new 2011 Railway timetable will be available from the Welcome Centre in the near future. For information on current and future events, keep checking www.iombusandrail.info, call 662525 or call into the Welcome Centre.

Source: Department of Public Transport

Residents’ Season Tickets continue to offer great value for money, they are priced the same as last year at £50 per adult, £25 per child and are valid for unlimited travel on all scheduled Manx Electric Railway, Snaefell Mountain Railway and Steam Railway services for the 2011 operational season, but are not valid for additional special events put on throughout the year, such as the Manx Heritage Transport Festival and the Santa Trains.

The 2011 operating season for Isle of Man Railways is:

· Steam Railway
Open from 12th March until 6th November 2011

· Manx Electric Railway
Open from 19th March until 6th November 2011

· Snaefell Mountain Railway
Open from 16th April until 2nd October 2011

Application forms can be obtained from the Isle of Man Welcome Centre and main stations. The Welcome Centre at the Sea Terminal is open Monday to Saturday 8.00am-6.00pm. A passport sized photograph will be required for each applicant.

A first for 2011 is the introduction of a Rail Card for residents.

The Rail Card is priced at £10 per adult and £5 per child and entitles the holder to 50% discount on travel on any of the scheduled services on our three railways. In addition to that, the Rail Card also has a detachable section which entitles the holder to a discount of £5 (adults) or £2.50 (child) off one of our many special events, such as the Hop-tu-naa Ghost Trains and Snaefell Sunset Dinners.

To give you an idea of how much this new Rail Card can save, a standard adult return fare on the Steam Railway from Douglas to Port Erin in 2011 will cost £11.60, by using the Rail Card this journey would cost only £5.80, so just two of these trips with the Rail Card will have saved £11.60, which is already £1.60 more than the £10 Rail Card purchase fee. The owner will also have the added bonus of £5 off a special event of their choice, so even those that do not use the Island’s railways very often will benefit by having a Rail Card.

Hon David Cretney MHK, Minister for Community, Culture and Leisure commented:

“Both the Residents Season Tickets and the new Residents Rail Card would make ideal gifts for friends and loved ones this Christmas, they are great value, are thoughtful and will continue to benefit the lucky owner all throughout the 2011 season .”

Other goodies that would make ideal gifts this Christmas would be the Travellers’ Companion, a great guidebook on the Island’s Steam Railway, and the new 2011 Calendar, featuring many beautiful photographs of the Island’s railways and countryside; it also comes with the opportunity for budding photographers to win a ride on the footplate on one of our steam engines!

Both the Travellers’ Companion and Calendar are available from the Welcome Centre, and whilst the Santa Trains are taking passengers to see Santa’s Kingdom they are also available from Douglas, Tinseltown (Castletown) and Port Erin stations. For those that want to give the gift of a truly memorable experience, then the Ultimate Driving Experience on the Manx Electric Railway is for you, with new advanced courses being introduced for 2011 for those that want more of a challenge!

Residents’ Rail Cards and Residents’ Season Tickets are available from the Isle of Man Welcome Centre and a passport sized photograph will be required for each applicant.

The holder must produce the Rail Card every time they want to buy a ticket to travel and the special event discount can only be redeemable in person at The Welcome Centre.

Further information on multi-journey tickets, special events and Christmas gift ideas, visit www.iombusandrail.info

Source: Department of Public Transport

• The 2010 railway (IMR/MER/SMR) timetable is available online here

• Bonfire Night (click here for details or click image for large size poster)

The Snaefell Mountain Railway has now closed for the 2010 season, but what a triumphant season it has been! With over 41,300 passengers enjoying the Mountain Railway, this is a 15% increase on 2009′s passenger figures. 2010 also saw the introduction of special events such as Pie in the Sky and the hugely popular Snaefell Sunset Dinners with plans to build on their success next year.

As a result of the Mountain Railway’s success, there are plans for improving the Summit Cafe’s facilities and furnishings; in fact work has already started on refurbishment for running more events in 2011.

Hon David Cretney MHK, Minister for Community, Culture and Leisure commented:

“All three Railways on the Island truly are unique, they are an important part of Manx Heritage and we are very lucky to have them on the Island. The introduction of special events such as Pie in the Sky, Sunset Dinners and the Hop-Tu-Naa Ghost Trains provide visitors and residents with a great evening out, which would not be possible without the Railways. Passenger figures have increased and the stations have been a hub of activity.”

For information on current and future events, keep checking www.iombusandrail.info, telephone 01624 662525 or call into the Welcome Centre.

Source: Department of Community Culture & Leisure (photos & text)

Last weekend saw the Island’s first ‘Pie in the Sky’ event, the latest of many new initiatives organised this year by Isle of Man Railways. This particular event involved being transported to the top of Snaefell by the famous Snaefell Mountain Railway, for a night of good food and star gazing with members of the Isle of Man Astronomical Society.

Passengers on the Friday night’s tram were greeted at the summit by glorious panoramic views as the sun set on the horizon, before heading inside as darkness fell to warm up with a delicious hot-pot supper and homemade apple pie.

Howard Parkin, Chairman of the Isle of Man Astronomical Society, then gave an overview of the sights that could be seen that night. Outside, the lack of light pollution revealed perfect stargazing conditions, the clear skies enabled Howard and members of the Society to point out the Milky Way, various constellations, a surprising number of satellites, at least one meteor and the planet Jupiter with the aid of a telescope that was taken up to the summit. Through this passengers could clearly see planet’s atmospheric bands and the Galilean moons.

Howard Parkin, Chairman of the Isle of Man Astronomical Society commented:
“We really were fortunate with the weather, the skies seemed to clear at about 6pm and with little wind at the summit, viewing conditions really were ideal. The lack of light pollution on the summit meant that the Milky Way was really prominent and we spent nearly an hour showing everyone the sights and explaining the various features and the mythology of many of the constellations”

Poor weather on Saturday meant that Howard presented a very informative and entertaining set of videos and images detailing what could be seen in clear weather. This also included video footage of the live link up with the International Space Station held last October with NASA astronaut Nicole Stott at the Manx Museum, as well as two Manx Space exploits, the Cregneash Apollo mission and the MEA space programme!

Hon David Cretney MHK, Minister for Community, Culture and Leisure commented:

“I thoroughly enjoyed Friday night’s ‘Pie in the Sky’. Conditions were perfect and it is amazing just how much of the night sky you can see from Snaefell summit. Having Howard and his team there to point out specific constellations, planets and stars and the satellites passing overhead was very educating. This has been another hugely successful event by Isle of Man Railways and something I hope to repeat next year.”

Source: Department of Community Culture & Leisure (photos & text)