Train enthusiasts and anyone who has ever been curious about what the inside of a sleeper train looks like will be able to step onboard one this Thursday.
Great Western Railway (GWR) is holding an open day for people to look around its internationally renowned Night Riviera Sleeper.
The train will be stopped at Penzance Station between 10.30am and 1.30pm this Thursday (March 21), with general viewing available from 11am.
It’s before the full sleeper service timetable gets back up and running again, after upgrade works prevented the usual number of trains.
However, this will all change on Friday (March 22) when full service resumes, following completion of the project.
A spokesperson for GWR said: “You don’t know what you are missing if you have never been onboard the Night Riviera Sleeper.
“Upgrade works to signals in Cornwall by Network Rail has meant that the Night Riviera has not been able to run to its full, usual timetable.
“That work is now nearing completion and the full Sleeper timetable is expected to restart from this Friday 22 March.
“To mark the restart, customers and local leaders are invited to come and have a look at the sleeper facilities, including a tour of the berths, the onboard sleeper lounge car and our sleeper lounge with showers.”
Last week it was revealed that Network Rail had reached a key milestone in the final phase of its work to modernise railway signals across Devon and Cornwall, with passenger train services resuming after 13 days of round-the-clock work.
A team of more than 100 people worked across a 50-mile site to remove redundant equipment, lay new track, sleepers and ballast, and install new equipment that it is hoped will ease congestion at Truro.
As of last Monday a new digital signalling system in Cornwall has come into use, with control from Lostwithiel, Par and Truro signal boxes moving to Exeter. GWR said the upgrade, carried out with contractor Siemens, should improve the reliability and safety of the railway, while the new digital technology will allow for real-time information to be provided to passengers.
The last of the work is being carried out near Plymouth until this Thursday.
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