Bridgnorth Cliff Railway hoping to reopen next month after being shut for over a year
Bridgnorth Cliff Railway could soon be back up and running after being out of action for 14 months, the owner has said.
The funicular train in the market town was closed in December 2022, after a damaged retaining wall was found to pose a health and safety risk.
Repairs to the section of wall affecting the Cliff Railway, which is owned by the town council, were finalised in November.
The cost to fix the entire wall is set to be around £750,000.
Now the owner of the Cliff Railway, Malvern Tipping says the attraction is on track to be back up and running next month.
He said: "We have managed to have the six-monthly safety inspection of the Cliff Railway on Friday, as required by our regulators. The Cliff Railway passed that and a new safety certificate is being issued, which means that we are allowed to carry passengers.
"Skeleton staff at the Cliff Railway are continuing to undertake works to have it ready for reopening and are preparing and servicing parts."
He continued: "New, updated company handbooks have been printed in readiness for issuing to staff once they have been engaged. Letters from me to former members of staff, inviting them to re-join the team, will be sent once the office tells me that it is ready.
"I am told that many just cannot wait to get back to work and to see the Cliff Railway fully operational again. We are so fortunate to have such a dedicated team. My family and I so much look forward to welcoming them back.
"We also want to thank local businesses for their support and the Bridgnorth Journal and Shropshire Star for their support.
"Presently, we are looking to a reopening sometime in February. We shall then be looking to promote the reopening, because an influx of passengers at Easter will enable the Cliff Railway, as well as local businesses reliant on visitors to the town, to replenish their coffers, which were so much depleted first by Covid and then by a fourteen-month closure necessitated by the repair works to the retaining wall of the Castle Walk cliff.
"Hopefully, we and our partners in the town can then move on and look forward to better times."
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