Cash boost for Kent’s railways

The East Kent Railway was the venue for the launch of Visit Kent’s Connecting Kent’s Heritage Railways project on December 9.


Representatives from five of Kent’s preserved railways assembled at the East Kent Railway on December 9 for the launch of Visit Kent’s Connecting Kent’s Heritage Railways Project. VISIT KENT


Five preserved railways are to benefit from the project, which aims to boost the profile and passenger numbers of the Kent & East Sussex, Romney Hythe & Dymchurch, Spa Valley, Sittingbourne & Kemsley and East Kent Railways.

The project seeks to improve these lines’ digital presence, explore the possibility of online ticketing and joint railway passes, and train railways’ staff and volunteers in marketing and social media skills.

The campaign, which is being funded by a £75,000 Department for Transport grant awarded in June this year, will see greater collaboration between Kent’s preserved railways and TOC Southeastern Railway.

Sandra Matthews-Marsh, Chief executive of Visit Kent, says: “A huge amount of people put so much time and effort into keeping these networks going, often for free, and we want to celebrate their hard work and the railways’ stories.

“Our project will aim to inspire visitors to complete or extend their journeys around Kent on our preserved railways, with a new digital platform and increased information about nearby networks at our modern stations.”

Visit Kent is already working on dedicated marketing, PR and social media campaigns for the participating railways.

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