The Severn Valley Railway has released its plans for the up and coming season, with the railway saying that tourist attractions across the UK are being impacted by up to 30% drop in numbers.

SVR leaders say they remain committed to providing an experience for visitors and will continue to hold events throughout the year.

Measures announced today include changes to staff working patterns, a recruitment freeze and voluntary redundancies. The railway also wants to take steps to save energy across its business.

Whilst compulsory redundancies havent been ruled out by the Severn Valley Railway, the railway says it is working hard to avoid these.

A mixed of hop-on, hop off services, mixed with excursion style trips will return for 2023 after the annual maintenance shut down period has ended.

Services will be concentrated into four days a week, with a mix of both steam and diesel services.

Both steam and diesel galas will return for 2023, as will the Step Back to the 1940s weekend.

Utility costs are one of the biggest expenses for the railway, and the SVR has asked volunteers to consolidate working patterns so that premises only heating and lighting at certain times, with a request for work to be postponed until the summer to save on costs.

Mike Ball, chairman of SVR (Holdings) Plc said:“When we planned our programme and budgets for 2022, it was on the basis that we would see a gradual return to ‘normal’ pre-pandemic levels of activity as the year progressed. This did not happen, and the economic outlook suggests that 2023 may well be worse than 2022.

“What we believed were temporary changes are going to be longer term ones, and we must adapt in order to survive now and thrive in the future.”

“The SVR has been running as a preserved railway since 1970, and it has an inspirational and glorious history. We’re determined to do everything we can now to protect it for future generations to enjoy. The year ahead is going to be critical to achieving that aim.”

Helen Smith, the SVR’s managing director added: “We are facing the double problem of a significant drop in passenger revenue and secondary spend alongside escalating costs across all areas of the business. The current situation in Ukraine means the cost of utilities to heat and light our premises has rocketed, along with the cost of coal and diesel to power our locomotives.

“We want to make these important changes, in the coming year and beyond, to ensure our award-winning attraction continues to offer an excellent value-for-money experience for visitors.

“The resourcefulness and dedication of the SVR’s staff, both paid and volunteer, is truly marvellous. They are literally the life-blood of what makes this railway tick, and we’re working actively with everyone to achieve our objectives this year. We’re also grateful to our wonderful visitors who choose us to spend their time with. We want to make sure they have a heritage experience to cherish in 2023.”