LONDON — The private train of Britain’s royal family will be retired, King Charles has decided.
The first royal train, with special cars commissioned by Queen Victoria, dates to 1869. The current version’s equipment dates to 1977 and was last upgraded in the 1980s; its stock would need to be replaced, and storage and maintenance have becoming increasingly expensive. And it was used just twice in 2024-25. So, The Guardian reports, the train will be decommissioned and replaced with two modern helicopters.
The BBC reports the nine-car train will tour the UK before it is taken out of service in 2027, after which it could be put on public display. Sky News reports the end of its use coincides with the conclusion of the train’s current maintenance contract (with DB Cargo) in March 2027.
“The royal train, of course, has been part of national life for many decades, loved and cared for by all involved,” James Chalmers, keeper of the privy purse, said of the decision. “But in moving forward we must not be bound by the past.
“Just as so many parts of the royal household’s work have been modernized, so too the time has come to bid the fondest of farewells as we seek to be disciplined and forward in our allocation of funding.”
Town & Country magazine offers a history of the train, said to be a favorite of the late Queen Elizabeth, including images of the lavish interiors of some earlier versions. Among the article’s details: the train’s use has always been a closely guarded secret: even the train’s staff does not know beforehand who from the royal family will be aboard.
— Updated July 1 at 8:43 a.m. with additional photo.
Hopefully it will go to the National Railway Museum in York, one of the finest in the world.
NRM-York comes complete with a viewing platform over a busy passenger station. I learned a lot there. The men I met there were very interested in what I could tell them about railroading in USA and Canada.
Say what you will but seeing the Royal Train in various parts of the UK is one of this life’s many treasures, “God Save the King”
This is the 21st century…
It had become an obsolete symbol of the monarchy and in the age of terrorism a difficult mode to protect by security agencies.
They should offer it up for charter trips. I’m sure there are folks or organizations who would pay a nice price for the privilege to ride it.