Unique tramway faces £89,000 repair bill

A major fundraising appeal has been launched to help pay for vital repairs to Britain's oldest working cable tramway.

The Shipley Glen Tramway opened in 1895 as a link between a wooded area near the town of Baildon and the village of Saltaire which lies below.

The charitable trust which has run the tramway since 2002 with a team of volunteers hopes to raise £89,000.

Trustee John Pitcher said the electrically-powered funicular had been assessed as safe to continue to operate, but would have to temporarily close for the work to be carried out "as soon as possible".

Pitcher explained: "What has happened, over the years, is that the damp has washed away underneath the tracks actually into the track bed, so the track bed is now a little bit unstable.

"Over the years we've maintained it, and you can stick patches on for so long, but there comes a time when you need a little bit more than an Elastoplast."

Pitcher said the Glen Tramway Preservation Company Limited charity, set up to run the Victorian attraction, kept a float for running repairs, which included buying a new rope.

However, the damage to the track bed, made worse by recent storms, was much more expensive to repair and would take about three weeks to complete, he said.

Pitcher said: "We've got to raise abut £89,000, so it's not an inconsiderable sum of money.

"We've got a fair amount in our own reserves, but certainly not enough to cover anything like that expense.

"Really we need to do it as soon as possible because, obviously, we want to be up and running hopefully for Easter and continuing into the next 10 or 15 years."

Public donations could be made via the charity's website or social media pages, Pitcher said.

The tramway has two tracks and a pair of tram cars and runs every Sunday between midday and 16:00.

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