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Before the roof work can begin , the rail vehicles in Station Hall will need to be protected by the conservation team to enable building work to take place without disturbing the priceless exhibits below .
Visitors hoping to see Station Hall ’ s highlights such as the museum ’ s collection of six royal carriages and Stephenson ’ s original Rocket , are encouraged to visit the museum before the end of the year .
Charlotte Kingston , Head of Design , Exhibitions and Communications , said : “ Station Hall is one of the most popular parts of the National Railway Museum and home to the museum ’ s royal carriages , but the condition of the roof meant that temporarily closing the hall was the only viable option to enable us to protect and preserve this unique listed structure .
“ The museum ’ s main collection buildings such as North Shed and Great Hall will remain open and visitors will still have more than 9,000m2 of museum space with more than 40 rail vehicles and thousands of objects on display to tell the story of the railways and engineering .”
Railways Futures Gallery Porterbrook has announced significant support for the National Railway Museum with a £ 2.5m sponsorship agreement . The funding supports the new ‘ Railway Futures Gallery ’ - a key component of the museum ’ s Vision 2025 masterplan . The gallery will be a multi-dimensional and interactive experience which explores and imagines the role of the railways in the transport system of tomorrow .
Planned to open in 2025 to coincide with the museum ’ s 50th birthday , the Railway Futures Gallery will be a key feature of Central Hall – a new building and welcome space located between the museum ’ s Great Hall and Station Hall .
Central Hall will be a cornerstone of Vision 2025 - the museum ’ s journey to transform its offer to become the World ’ s Railway Museum and to attract up to 1.2m visitors each year .
Porterbrook owns almost a quarter of the national passenger rail fleet , and has an established reputation for delivering new technologies , such as battery , hybrid and hydrogen powered trains . These innovations support the UK ’ s Net Zero ambitions , improve air quality , reduce emissions , and enhance network resilience .
The partnership builds on a decade-long relationship and reflects a shared vision between the National Railway Museum and Porterbrook in areas such as sustainability and how innovation and digital technologies can and will shape the railway of the future .