Mountain railway service suspended

Safety fears force immediate closure

The Snaefell Mountain Railway has been suspended with immediate effect, after experts concluded it's unsafe.

A statement from the Department of Infrastructure says the heritage system is no longer compatible with modern safety requirements needed to ensure the well-being of passengers and staff.

The closure, ordered by the DoI and the Health and Safety Inspectorate, was ordered after a 'comprehensive review'.

The department is now drafting in an Isle of Man Railways engineering team to deal with the problems - until now, in-house engineers have been deployed supporting day-to-day operations.

Doubts about the safety of the SMR hit the headlines in August when a tram laden with passengers hurtled downhill for a distance after a brake failure.

The service was briefly suspended before re opening.

Now, the authorities admit ensuring heritage rolling stock meets modern safety requirements is proving difficult.    

Manx Electric Railway and Isle of Man Railways services will continue as scheduled.