The Ayr Brush

[alex57601]

This tour, originally scheduled to run on Saturday 6th June using 86101 and 86260 has been postponed until a later date.

Statement extracted from the Northern Charters website www.northerncharters.co.uk

Urgent notice from Northern Charters regarding the “Ayr Brush” 06/06/09.

We are sorry to advise that due to very poor loading figures, the decision has been taken to postpone the Ayr Brush until a date in either August or September. This will hopefully enable us to run the run the tour and at the very least break-even. If we were to run this train as things stand, NC would be facing a tremendous loss, which in the current financial situation we are un-able to absorb.

We understand that passengers will be looking forward to this train, as are we, but the only way of avoiding cancellation, is by postponing to a future date to enable us to gain more bookings.

We will be in contact formally with all passengers booked on the train, in the next couple of days, to explain the situation and will also advise of the new date as soon as it is finalised.

We would like to sincerely apologise for any inconvenience and thank you for your continued support.


Issued 27/5/09 By Peter O’Brien

For and on behalf of The Northern Charters Partnership.

 

[yorkie]

Bizarrely there are many new entrants to the Railtour market in 2009 despite the economic downturn. I hadn't heard of these guys until today, but there are others too. While I wish them all success, my head says this is madness and there are going to be problems ahead.

The website says "Demand for this very special train is expected to be very high so book now to avoid disappointment." I think that the demand forecasts for many railtours won't take into account the current economic climate and that is a very dangerous thing to ignore.

 

[alex57601]

They've been open for bookings for some time, and do have other tours planned, but yes it does surprise me that there are so many new entrants in 2009 during a recession. It wouldn't surprise me if there are more cancellations or postponements like this in the future, especially from the new entrants of recent times, and especially if two promoters clash on the same day! The market really can't take any more during the current economic climate.

What didn't help IMO was that Spitfire are offering a near-identical tour a month later at a cheaper price, starting from the West Midlands (wider target market), and those who were booked on the first two Electric Scot tours got a special rate. And of course, the fact that Spitfire are an established promoter now, whereas Northern Charters are newbies.

Nonetheless, I wish Northern Charters the best of luck and maybe I will sample one of their tours some day.