Ida Bay Railway in southern Tasmania has lease terminated by PWS

A popular tourist site in the state’s south has had its lease terminated, in a move the site’s operator has labelled a “closed door” decision.

TASMANIAN Parks and Wildlife Service has defended its choice to terminate the lease of a once-popular tourist attaction, at the heartbreak of the site’s operator.

The now former Ida Bay Railway lessee, Meg Thornton, 81, said she was kept out of the loop on PWS’ “closed-door” decision to terminate the contract she held for the bush tramway in the state’s South.

The railway has not operated for the past 12 months following a derailment on the tramline, which led to concerns arising over its safety.

The termination of Ms Thornton’s lease has been met with sympathy by Tasmanian Liberal senator Eric Abetz who said he “trusts the parties can resolve the issues”.

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Ms Thornton said she had spent up to $800,000 on the railway since taking it over in 2004 and said despite attempts to have engineers assess the site, repair costs were beyond her reach.

“I still owe money to people who invested in the development,” she said.

“Every cent I earned from the railway I put back into it. I left myself with no savings and worked a second job to maintain it.

“I’ve now moved to a retirement village, which I feel very fortunate for, but I had to rely on charity help. After working all my life it’s unfortunate for that to happen.”

She said she was disappointed how her leasehold ended.

“There was no real discussion with me [about the decision to end the lease]. It was all made behind closed doors,” she said.

Meg Thornton, now 81, has owned the iconic Ida Bay Railway for years. The Ida Bay Railway is located in Southern Tasmania. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES

A PWS spokeswoman said a lease termination notice was issued “due to ongoing failure to rectify safety issues and other breaches at the site”.

“The lease for the site was validly terminated on 12 November 2019 and the PWS has now resumed management of the site. Our priority now is to ensure the site is secure and safe,” the spokeswoman said.

“PWS recognises the site is locally important for its heritage values and tourism, and will work closely with Council and other stakeholders in the community to determine future uses for the site.”

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Huon Valley mayor Bec Enders said the site boasted “great tourism potential”.

Liberal senator Eric Abetz said he hoped the parties could resolve the issue.

“Having travelled on the Ida Bay Railway on many occasions over the years it is a matter of regret to observe the Railway’s current state,” Mr Abetz said.

“I personally inspected the site in August, and made representations on the lessee’s behalf to the State Government, noting it is a legal matter between them.

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“The deteriorated state of the track is an infrastructure issue which would require substantial input of capital to rectify, which is beyond the capacity of the operator.

“The deep south of our state needs more exciting tourism experiences and the Ida Bay Railway provided a unique heritage experience, and a bit of history along with beautiful scenery.”

The State Government was contacted for comment.

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