Scenic railroad's future uncertain
WILTON, N.H. --The Wilton Scenic Railroad traditionally opens on Mother's Day, but many questions remain about its future because of the death of its founder in January.
The railroad was founded in 2003 by local businessman Stu Draper. He died of a heart attack on Jan. 31 and his widow, Bonnie, put the cars up for sale for $300,000.
The problem is that it would be all but impossible that a new owner could go through a hearing process and get permission to operate the railroad by May 14.
The railroad can run this year only with the cooperation of Milford-Bennington, a freight line that provides specialized track inspection and engineers under a contract with Draper. The freight line's expertise is required under the existing state license.
"If an arrangement can be reached with the estate, we would be interested in continuing to honor the agreement," said Peter Leishman, president of Milford-Bennington. "The cars are basically ready to go. It would take us just a few hours to dust them off," he said.
Leishman said that while he has heard of several people in the region who could probably provide the finances to keep the railroad going, no one has yet stepped forward to keep it in Wilton. Some offers have been made to buy the cars and move them out of the area.
The railroad also offers events such as a blues night and a run with a mystery-themed dinner theater.
Leishman said several thousand advance tickets have been sold for the upcoming season.
The New Hampshire Department of Transportation regulates trains for a variety of safety reasons and must approve a sale, Leishman said.
"It keeps getting more complicated," Leishman said of the rail industry. "I just received something new from Homeland Security today about security practices."
Regular passenger service ended on this stretch of rail line in 1936. Until Draper started the Wilton Scenic Railroad, no train had used the tracks for 20 years, and tens of thousands of dollars of repairs and upgrades had to be done to get them usable again.
The railroad is one of four scenic railroads in the state. It ran two- to three-hour trips between Wilton and Greenfield State Park.
------
On the Net:
------
Information from: The Telegraph, http://www.nashuatelegraph.com
