Last Wednesday, 26th November, the Great Central Railway (Nottingham) Limited submitted a request to the Secretary of State for Transport to vary the restrictions on its permitted operating hours.

The railway’s permitted operating hours were authorised under an Order issued in accordance with the Transport and Works Act 1992.

That authorised Great Central Railway (Nottingham) Limited, with a registered office at Sherwood House, 7 Gregory Boulevard, Nottingham, NG7 6LB, to operate and use the railways described in the Order subject to certain restrictions, which included its operating hours.

The Company’s request to the Secretary of State was for written consent to amend the operating restrictions that are currently in place.

The Secretary of State’s consent to vary article 10 (5) of the Order is to allow a single train to operate on no more than two evenings a week, and to finish no later than 10 pm.

The train would depart from the Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre at Ruddington, then travel south through Rushcliffe Halt and across Stanford Viaduct, before a return journey to the Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre.

There is a current restriction on the railway that heritage passenger trains must not operate on the line after 6.00 pm, although there are no restrictions on freight and engineering trains, which can run at any time.

The request to the Secretary of State is available online at gcrn.co.uk.

Objections or representations about the request should be sent to the Secretary of State for Transport, c/o Transport Infrastructure Planning Unit, Department for Transport, Zone 1/18, Great Minster House, 33 Horseferry Road, London SW1P 4DR, email [email protected]

Ojections or representations must be made in writing, and should be received by the Secretary of State on or before Monday, 19th January 2026. They must state who is making the objection or representation, why it is being made, and a correspondence address to which a response should be sent.

Before reaching a decision, the Secretary of State will consider objections and representations received before the closing date for submissions.

The railway has recently installed a new locomotive servicing pit at its Ruddington headquarters, and is in the process of providing mains power to a heritage signal box at Hotchley Hill, which used to control trains running to the nearby British Gypsum plant.