Vandals damage historic railway carriages

Railway enthusiasts have been left "picking up the pieces" after vandals smashed into a set of historic carriages.

Graffiti was daubed inside five carriages belonging to the Great Central Railway Rolling Stock Trust on Saturday 9 May.

The carriages are from the early 1900s and are housed in Ruddington, Nottinghamshire, where they are being restored for people to travel on.

Roger Penson, chair of the trust, said it was not the first time their rolling stock had been targeted, adding it was "a disappointment".

The vandals broke through wood in the corner of one carriage to get inside, and kicked the doors in on the others, according to the trust.

They also broke open toolboxes, a computer used in the restoration process, and left graffiti tags on both the inside and the coverings of the carriages.

Penson, 80, said since 2013 there has been about four or five cases of vandalism on the site.

He expects the latest incident will cost about £4,000 to repair.

"That's money we can ill spare," he said.

"It's just a disappointment, a big sigh, and pick up the pieces when we can."

Three of the carriages are Barnum carriages.

According to Penson, they were built in the Edwardian period and are early examples of carriages with central aisles, rather than compartments.

They were aimed at encouraging more working class tourists on to the railways.

He said of 38 built, only four still survive.

He added: "I think it's true they're highly significant.

"In many ways I feel sorry for [the people who did this]. It's clearly something they get a kick out of and then they just go away and they don't think what it might mean to other people who actually own the stuff."

Nottinghamshire Police confirmed a report was filed and that no arrests had been made.

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