Crich Tramway Village, home to the National Tramway Museum, is pleased to announce that following some essential safety work, the vintage trams are running again, and the museum is excited to welcome visitors, old and new, back for the summer visits.

The Derbyshire attraction has not been able to open all facilities, including tram operation, since 18th May this year, following a visit on Tuesday 17th May by an inspection team from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).

Two traction poles, which hold up the overhead line in the depot area, had become corroded and were deemed to be a safety risk and hence the tram depots, main Exhibition Hall and children’s soft play area were cordoned off.

New traction poles had to be sourced and were kindly donated by NET operator, Nottingham Trams Limited who were quick to offer both support and the urgently needed replacement poles, known as masts.

This year’s ‘Classic Motorcycle Day’ at Crich Tramway Village will be the fifth event for the partnership with the Vincent HRD Owners Club and with sponsorship from Derwent Waste Management.

The event attracts around 300 motorcycles, made up of vintage machines to relatively modern machines of the1990’s, all of which must be over 25yrs old. 

A live band will play at the bandstand during the day and there are numerous trophies for the best machines judged by expert judges, including Best Original Motorcycle judged by the editor of Old Bike Mart, Blue Miller. 

The ‘Best in Show’ Trophy will, again, be voted for by the visiting public, who are encouraged to browse the whole display before making their selection.

Further to our last post, Crich Tramway Village, home to the National Tramway Museum, is pleased to report that some of the areas are now open to the public, although trams are still not running.

Following an inspection team from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), two distinct areas of concern were high-lighted and safety restrictions meant that the Derbyshire attraction decided to close to the public. After completion of detailed repairs on the traction pole in the main street near the Red Lion pub, the restriction has been formally lifted, allowing access to the main street, refreshments, shops, Stephenson’s Discovery Centre, Workshop Viewing Gallery and Eagle Press.

The other restriction on the Depot Fan, where the trams enter and exit the depots requires more extensive work by external contractors, and as such the tram depots, Exhibition Hall and indoor play area unfortunately remain closed, and it is therefore not possible to move and operate trams.

The management will keep the public updated through their website and social media as to when trams will be able to resume operation.

Dr Mike Galer, General Manager at Crich Tramway Village, said:

“We take safety very seriously at the Museum and we are opening the areas which are no longer under a safety restriction to visitors.

Our Great British Seaside Event planned for Saturday 28th May to Saturday 4th June will go ahead with the entertainment planned, but without the trams running.

Since we cannot operate our trams and still have some areas closed, we are offering a discounted day entry price of just £10.00 for adults and offering free admission to children. Those visitors wishing to purchase free return tickets may still do so at our standard prices, so that they can return when all areas are fully accessible again.”

Up-dates for re-opening can be found on the website: www.tramway.co.uk and social media sites:   www.facebook.com/crichtramwayvillage and www.twitter.com/CrichTramway

Tickets should be purchased on arrival, as the discounted day tickets are not available online.

Copy provided by Crich Tramway Village.

 

Crich Tramway Village, home to the National Tramway Museum, re-opens after winter maintenance on Saturday 12th March 2022.

After a difficult couple of years, the popular visitor attraction managed to open for some time during 2020 and 2021, though operating under government Covid-19 guidelines, which meant limited access to some of the facilities. 

Now that the pandemic restrictions have been lifted, all the facilities will be open, though with continued measures to maintain high levels of hygiene.

The team at Crich look forward to launching refurbished tram, Newcastle 102, into service later in the season following further checks. 

LPTB 1622 is the only remaining working example of the largest class of tramcars from anywhere in the UK, and will be running complete with waist panel adverts, similar to those it would have carried in London between 1912 and 1940.

Popalong Babies, Crich Medical Practice Patients Participation Group and Derbyshire Toy Libraries have come together to organise a paediatric first aid course for parents and carers. This will take place on: