The
contract


to
run
the
Royal
Train
will
not
be
renewed
when
it
comes
to
an
end
in
March
2027,
as
part
of
wider
efforts
to
reduce
costs
at
the
Royal
Household
which
are
being
encouraged
by
the
King.

The
special
journeys
made
on
the
set
of
up
to
nine
coaches
will
be
replaced
by
two
helicopters,
although
the
royal
family
will
continue
to
travel
by
service
trains,
according
to
Buckingham
Palace.

James
Chalmers,
keeper
of
the
privy
purse,
said:
‘The
royal
train,
of
course,
has
been
part
of
national
life
for
many
decades,
loved
and
cared
for
by
all
those
involved.
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
modernised
and
adapted
to
reflect
the
world
of
today,
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.’

The
rolling
stock
was
last
modernised
in
the
1980s,
and
was
traditionally
maintained
at
Wolverton
Works
in
Buckinghamshire.

Queen
Elizabeth
II
was
very
fond
of
the
train,
but
she
also
used
ordinary
trains
from
time
to
time,
such
as
when
she
travelled
with
Prince
Philip
on
a
Thameslink
train
from
London
to
open
Luton
Airport
Parkway
in
1999.
She
also
used
Great
Northern
services
from
London
King’s
Cross
to
travel
to
King’s
Lynn
on
her
way
to
Sandringham.
On
such
journeys
a
modest
area
of
first
class
was
cordoned
off
for
her,
and
she
was
accompanied
by
her
usual
security
staff.

The
present
King
and
other
members
of
the
royal
family
are
expected
to
continue
using
service
trains
when
it
is
convenient
for
them
to
do
so.

The
tradition
of
special
royal
carriages
started
in
the
early
days
of
railways.

Queen
Victoria’s
future
husband
Prince
Albert
travelled
with
his
brother
on
the
Great
Western
Railway
from
Slough
to
Paddington
in
November
1839
in
a
special
‘posting
carriage’
furnished
with
sofas,
and
was
said
to
have
found
the
experience
‘convenient
and
agreeable’.
The
GWR,
hoping
that
the
Queen
would
be
persuaded,
built
the
first
Royal
Carriage
in
1840.
The
Queen
used
it
for
the
first
time
on
11
June
1842,
again
between
Slough
and
London,
and
was
impressed,
although
she
opposed
‘excessive’
speeds
of
more
than
40mph
(64km/h).

Other
large
railway
companies
soon
provided
royal
saloons,
but
the
first
complete
royal
trains
were
built
for
the
Queen’s
Diamond
Jubilee
in
1897
by
the
Great
Western
Railway
and
the
London,
Brighton
&
South
Coast
Railway.

The
future
of
the
last
Royal
Train
after
2027
is
not
clear,
although
it
may
be
opened
on
display
to
the
public.

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