FEDECRAIL MEMBERS COME FROM 23 NATIONS Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, Ukraine. WHAT IS FEDECRAIL? FEDECRAIL – the European Federation of Museum and Tourist Railways is an organization under Belgian law. It was founded in April 1994 in Brussels and was authorized by Belgian Royal Decree. FEDECRAIL - is the European parent organisation for all Railways and European Federation of Museum & Tourist Railways Museums which are engaged in the maintenance, preservation and Fédération Européenne des Chemins de Fer Touristiques et Historiques operation of historical railways. Europäische Föderation der Museums- und Touristikbahnen FEDECRAIL - every European national parent organisation for Museums and Tourist Railways can become a member of FEDECRAIL. Individual associations can only become members if there is no national organisation. Individual members or non-European associations can join the circle of the "FRIENDS OF FEDECRAIL" as promoters, patrons or sponsors but without the right to vote. FEDECRAIL - is a connecting link between the national parent organisations and the European Union (EU) committees, European parliament, EU commissions, EU executive boards, etc. FEDECRAIL - is the forum for discussions and the exchange of information for the European Museum and Tourist Railways FEDECRAIL – members of the Council, Officers and Technical Representatives come from the European member associations and work exclusively on a honorary basis. FEDECRAIL - publishes a newsletter with important information four times a year FEDECRAIL - organises an annual conference with specific European topics about the Museum and Tourist Railways, such as the preservation and maintenance of European railway heritage, regional regeneration, safety, financing, legislation harmonisation, environmental protection, etc.. Study trips to member railways and museums with the opportunity to see “behind the scenes” are always an element of the conferences. N O U V E L L E S B R E V E S FEDECRAIL Conferences have taken place in:- M I T T E I L U N G E N 1994 BRUXELLES, Belgium 1999 PRAGUE, Czech Republic 1995 STRASBOURG, France 2000 BAD BREISIG, Germany N E W S L E T T E R 1996 BIRMINGHAM, United Kingdom 2001 TORINO, Italy 1997 STOCKHOLM, Sweden 2002 RIGA, Latvia 1998 BARCELONA, Spain 2003 LLANDUDNO, U.K. Nombre - Nummer - Number 19 Janvier - Januar - January 2004 26 More than 50 people gathered at the British Embassy in Warsaw for the morning session on 30/10/03, followed by the afternoon session at the National Railway Museum. The keynote speaker was David Morgan who explained the work of FEDECRAIL and the UK HRA as examples of the benefits of umbrella organisations in dealing with national and international issues. John Fuller addressed the conference on the work of FEDECRAIL and NERHT with particular emphasis on the new members of the European family. Andrew Goltz expanded on the UK Heritage Railway scene demonstrating the challenges that had been met and overcome over the last 50 years. Leszek Butowski from the EU explained the grant opportunities for Tourist Railways and Museums. Local speakers spoke on the development of Polish preservation, an interesting project near Warsaw where the Mlawa – Makow Mazowiecki narrow gauge railway is planned to form the central focus of a regional tourism regeneration and the development of relationships between cycleways, greenways and tourist railways. All who were involved with the conference judged it a great success and after taking a week or so to recover the Polish team are already starting to think about next year’s conference which will probably take place in Krakow, Poland’s original capital and Chabówka, where Mike Pease’s campaign to encourage the Polish heritage rail movement originally started. Precis of a report by Andrew Goltz, Warsaw The spark that led to the First Polish Tourist Train and Museum Conference – Chabówka Museum and Workshops 25 The weather for the trip was less than ideal with an unseasonal blizzard and Editor - Rédacteur - Redakteur early snowfall. The group returned to the town for an enjoyable buffet lunch John Fuller, 261 Lower Higham Road, Chalk, Gravesend, Kent, DA12 2NP, laid on by the mayor. It had been hoped to go on to visit Commandau and the UK upper section of the line and inspect the unique Krauss 4-6-0T 763.247 built Telephone + Facsimile: +44 (0)1474 362208 ; Mobile: +44 (0)7785 250571 in 1916 in Munich, but unfortunately arrangements could not be finalised. Email: [email protected] or [email protected] Later in the afternoon a small group went privately by car to visit Commandau, Editorial Board where there is 90% unemployment following the sawmill closure and the town John Fuller (English) - details above is in dire need of regeneration for tourist purposes. Bruno Rebbelmund (German) - Westerwaldstraße 7 - D-46145 Oberhausen Telephone: +49-208-6351569 Facsimile: +49-208-667443 The event concluded with a celebratory dinner at the Bradul Hotel and the Email: [email protected] next day saw the group disperse with a number returning to Bucharest. Olivier Jaubert (French) – Tel : +33 1 46 91 09 69 Mobile : +33 6 73 87 66 64 Grateful thanks are due to Serban Lacriteanu and Daniel Secorescu of the Email : [email protected] Association for organising a most enjoyable visit and I am looking forward to a return perhaps in more summer-type weather! FEDECRAIL Contacts: Richard Tapper – UK (New Europe Railway Heritage Trust) Our website can be found at www.fedecrail.org Council Members and Officers can be contacted by email in the format »name »@fedecrail.org (as shown for the editor at the top of this page) Postal Contact should be to the FEDECRAIL Secretary :- POLAND’S FIRST EVER NATIONAL CONFERENCE FOR Livius Kooy, De Akker 25, 7481 GA Haaksbergen, The Netherlands. TOURIST RAILWAYS AND MUSEUMS Telephone (and Facsimile by request only) : +31 53 5727357 Email : [email protected] The Director of the National Railway Museum, preserved railway and railway Contact details for the Conference Organiser and Treasurer are included in museum operators, directors from PKP - Poland’s state railway company, booking forms and renewal forms, as necessary. representatives from local and central government, officials from the British Embassy and the British-Polish Chamber of Trade, as well as railway-minded Council Members businessmen, came together in Warsaw on Thursday 30/10/03 to attend the David MORGAN (UK) President, Heimo ECHENSPERGER (D) Vice first ever national conference devoted to Poland’s developing railway President, Jacques DAFFIS (F) Vice President, Guido ROSSI (I), Sten preservation movement. ERSON-WESTER (S), Livius KOOY (NL) Secretary, Rik DEGRUYTER (B) Treasurer. The conference was the initiative of New Europe Railway Heritage Trust (NERHT) Secretary and Spa Valley Railway volunteer, Mike Pease, who has Officers been involved in Polish preservation since 1998 when he became involved in Peter OVENSTONE (UK) Conference Organiser. the Psykowice loco depot project . He visited the open air railway museum at John FULLER (UK), Editor, Bruno REBBELMUND (D), Olivier JAUBERT(F) Chabowka near Krakow earlier in 2003 to learn that PKP had just issued its closure notice together with several other of the regional museums. The FEDECRAIL Newsletter is published by and is the copyright © of the Chabowka is unique in that it is the only one of Poland’s regional railway European Federation of Tourist Railways and Museums. We thank museums authorised to carry out heavy overhauls on steam locomotives. photographers for permission to publish their work without fee. Mike began a vigorous lobbying campaign writing letters to the key decision The views expressed within the FEDECRAIL Newsletter are not necessarily makers responsible for Poland’s railway heritage which won a stay of those of the FEDECRAIL Council or Officers. All contributions are of a execution for Chabowka. However, he realised that there was still a threat to voluntary nature. Translations are by the School of Language and European the long-term future of Polish Railway Museums as a result of changes being Studies, Aston University, Birmingham, UK. made by PKP in preparation for its privatisation. Banking Mike alerted NERHT to the problems he had uncovered and they agreed to Fortis Bank (Belgium), Warandeberg 3, B-1000 Bruxelles, Belgium (Account support a conference to bring together all of the Polish Tourist Railways and No.001-2046897-79) Museums to try to tackle the short and long term issues. With the help of a Correspondence to FEDECRAIL Treasurer, Stationsplein, B-9990 Maldegem. local Polish support team and Andrew Goltz formerly of the Swanage Railway (UK), the conference programme was put together in less than three months. Next Edition : Items to the Editor by 29 February 2004 please. 24 1 Front Cover : Fedecrail Conference delegates at Abergynolwyn, Talyllyn about half way up the line, due to a weak underline bridge making the Railway with our special train. 31st March 2003 (Photo : J. Crane) locomotive overweight. Here it was replaced by a small Gemeinder built industrial diesel locomotive for the rest of the journey past the Bradul Hotel to INDEX the foot of the inclined plane, so it could be viewed. The plane itself is in need of restoration following forest fires and flood damage from earlier years. Editorial 2 Kjell Palén – Vice President (Retired) 4 FEDECRAIL Conference 2004, Leiden, Netherlands 4 A Look Back to the 2003 Conference 5 The reopening trains. President’s Report 11 (Photos: Serban Lacriteanu) First World Steam and Tourist Railway Conference, Brienz 12 News from Sweden 14 Bahnbetriebswerk wird erhalten 15 Ist die Eisenbahn noch zeitgemäss? 16 A methodical approach to assessing the significance of railway artefacts 17 The reopening of the Covasna-Commandau Forestry Railway 22 Poland’s first ever national conference for Tourist Railways & Museums 24 EDITORIAL Welcome to the first new format FEDECRAIL Newsletter under our new Editorial Team.