The Andrews Labor Government is providing Victoria’s tourist and heritage rail sector with more than half a million dollars in funding to support them with their operations and their work to protect the state’s rail assets.

Sixteen tourist and heritage rail operators and museums are receiving a total of $620,000, after the sector was invited to apply for grants to support them with works to preserve state-owned assets earlier this year.

In their applications groups had to demonstrate that they would use the funding for projects including repairing, restoring, or refurbishing state owned rail assets; improving access to assets; delivering approved projects on buildings or rolling stock; and works in the rail corridor such as weed control or vegetation management.

Applications were assessed by VicTrack and the Department of Transport, and the successful groups will begin to receive their allocated funding over the coming weeks.

Victoria’s tourist and heritage rail operators and museums preserve the state’s rail history and help to grow economic activity and jobs, particularly in regional areas, while providing opportunities for volunteering.

The Labor Government’s strategy Preserving our rail history – a blueprint for the future will help secure the future of the tourist and heritage rail sector.

Tourist and heritage rail groups are being supported with governance, leasing, growing visitor numbers and developing processes to allocate rolling stock and other assets.

An additional $2.2 million of funding and grants has been provided to the sector so far to support the implementation of the blueprint.

As part of this, last year tourist and heritage rail operators received $1 million from the Government to help them re-establish their operations and cover costs after they were unable to run their services during COVID-19 restrictions.

The funding this year was offered to the 16 tourist and heritage rail and tram operators, and more widely to rail museums.