West Coast Wilderness Railway returns to action minus a new operator

THE West Coast Wilderness Railway steams back to life today, hauling with it the region's struggling tourism industry.

THE West Coast Wilderness Railway steams back to life today, hauling with it the region's struggling tourism industry.

For the first time in almost nine months, the train will carry tourists from Queenstown to Lynchford, Rinadeena and Dubbil Barril.

More than 100 tickets have been sold for today's trip and Tourism Minister Scott Bacon expects visitor support to continue to grow.

But Cradle Coast Tourism chairman Rod Stendrup warned tourism in the region would be slow to recover.

"You'll never see a great immediate increase [in tourist numbers]," Mr Stendrup said. "But it will grow -- that's our big hope and we'll see a resurgence in tourism."

He said it was hard to put a dollar figure on the impact of the railway's closure.

"But it would have been a significant impact on Queenstown, there's no doubt about that," he said.

"It's a shame it had to be closed for a period, but it's wonderful to have it reopen."

Tourism Industry Council Tasmania chairman Luke Martin said the State Government was running a "bare bones operation", with a reduced ticket price for the shorter trip.

Mr Martin said he was confident the State Government would deliver on its promise to reopen the 35km track to Strahan and secure a long-term operator for the venture.

The State Government has said there are two contenders to take on the operation.

It's understood one is a major national rail operator and the other is a consortium of local heritage rail operators and enthusiasts.

Locals were yesterday busily preparing for the reopening of the railway, which has become a key part of the community's identity in recent years.

There's the Railway Express general store, the West Coaster Hotel, Tracks Cafe and the Railway Hotel Motel.

Queenstown Motor Lodge operator Rhonda Alexander said the vibe in town was "positive".

"I was fortunate because I had all of the people working on the railway stay with me, but other people probably did [see a drop in business]," Ms Alexander said. "I think we had some disappointed tourists who were unable to do the train [trip] and we normally get a load of coaches, but this year the coaches had declined."

She said a number of locals recently landed jobs with the railway, including conductors and ticket sellers.

Infrastructure Minister David O'Byrne said the State Government had been determined to save the railway.

"Some eight months later, a tremendous amount of hard work by so many people, and significant investment by the State Government and previous Federal Labor Government, the railway's future now looks very bright," Mr O'Byrne said.

The former Federal Government contributed $6 million for capital improvements and the State Government will contribute up to $1.5 million a year for four years to ensure the railway's continued operation.

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