The huge loss of income to the SVR while it remains closed during our peak running season means we won’t be able to make our crucial annual investment into the Railway. This amounts to £4.5million, and would fund essential restorations to our infrastructure and rolling stock, along with apprentice training and a desperately needed overhaul of our IT infrastructure which is creaking at the seams.

It may be that we won’t see a return to sustainable levels of passenger revenue until well into next year. And, remember that when the coronavirus emergency hit us, we were already reeling from a 75% drop in passenger numbers because of the February floods.

The future for the SVR is challenging. But we are not going to give up the fight.