Return of Snowdon Mountain Railway's historic steam engine delayed

The return of Snowdon Mountain Railway’s Loco No5 to the summit of Wales’ highest peak has been delayed.

The historic locomotive named Moel Siabod, which was mothballed in 2000 while it was undergoing a full refit, was due to return service yesterday after 17 years.

However, a spokesman for Snowdon Mountain Railway told the Daily Post engineers have now confirmed the train is not ready to return to the top.

He said: “Final modifications need to be made before the train returns to the summit, it was not ready to go ahead this weekened.

“It is expected to return to the top either next week or the week after.

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“It is still very early in the season – it would have been great to combine the return of the train with the reopening of the summit building but the train is a flagship engine and has been out of service for a while.

“We wanted to make sure everything was absolutely right before it returns to service.

“It will be a highlight when it gets back on track and returns to the top.”

He said the delay has not had an impact on bookings.

Loco No5, the railway’s premier train, began carrying tourists to the top when the railway opened in 1896.

Following a comprehensive £60,000 refit and refurbishment of the engine, it is now a benchmark for all future rebuilds.

Snowdon Mountain Railway’s three steamers (Nos 2, 3, and 6) and four diesels (Nos 9, 10, 11 and 12) are however running to the summit now the Hafod Eryri visitor centre has reopened.

The narrow gauge service got underway on March 17 but trains were only running as far as Clogwyn station, 779m above sea level.