DERBY, England — Rolling stock manufacturer Alstom was forced to halt ticket sales for an event celebrating the 200th anniversary of railroading this week because the system handling ticketing was overwhelmed by demand from around the world.
The company is planning to open its Derby Litchurch Lane Works to the public for the first time in more than 50 years for an August event, “The Greatest Gathering,” showcasing more than 50 pieces of equipment from the rail industry’s past, present, and future. Tickets for the event Aug. 1-3 went on sale Thursday, Jan. 30, but a notice on Alstom’s website says the company’s third-party ticket provider was unable to cope with “unprecedented demand.” As a result, the company has suspended sales “until we are confident that our provider’s servers can handle the expected web traffic.” This, Alstom said, will take some time.
Alstom said “thousands of tickets” remain available across the three days. The company said it will promote details of the resumption of sales on its website and on social media.
The BBC reports the event will feature rides on the Derby factor’s test track, operation of narrow-trains, fairground attractions, street food, and live music. Up to 30,000 are expected to attend across the three days.
The Derby event is part of the Railway 200 celebration taking place across England to commemorating the anniversary of the opening of the Stockton & Darlington Railway on Sept. 27, 1825, an event marked as the start of modern railroading. Alstom’s participation reflect the fact that the first locomotive on that railway was built by Robert Stephenson & Co., which through a series of mergers eventually became part of Alstom in 1989.
More on Railway 200 is available here.
