The Great Central Railway has launched a campaign to restore the Stanford Viaduct, following the visit of the iconic Flying Scotsman locomotive.

Flying Scotsman arrived in mid-May for a three-week stay, attracting thousands of passengers and lineside photographers keen to capture the locomotive crossing the viaduct.

The viaduct carries the line 100 feet above the River Soar at the border between Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire. The 11-arch viaduct is the largest structure on both the Northern section of the Great Central Railway and the preserved route as a whole.

A £49,000 programme of works has now been outlined, with contractors expected to begin this year if fundraising targets are met, and to include the removal of graffiti from the abutment walls.

The appeal is being administered through the East Midlands Transport Heritage Trust’s Forward Fund. 

“We had a full survey carried out on the viaduct last year. The good news is, it’s fundamentally sound. There are some repairs we want to carry out, the biggest of which is rebuilding a wall which was demolished by vandals. Not only were bricks stolen, huge coping stones were pushed into the valley below. The visit of Flying Scotsman has proved a catalyst. We know the viaduct is a scenic high point of our 20-mile return journey. We want it to make it spick and span for passengers and spectators, because it defines the local landscape. We want to make sure it gives good service for the next century. Already we’ve raised thousands of pounds towards the work, thanks to the incredible interest we’ve had from the locomotive visiting.”

Andy Fillingham of GCR(N).