“We eclipsed the deadline for the critical path planning in transporting our equipment to Virginia and back in time for our North Pole Express excursions," Randy Paquette, SRI’s interim executive director, told Trains, while also giving high praise to the Buckingham Branch, the Virginia Scenic Railway, and Norfolk Southern

SRI provided additional comments from Operations and Facilities Manager Aaron Farmer. “There was no ‘ban’ on steam locomotives or outright refusal by the railroads to move the equipment that led to this decision. The reality is that we needed sufficient lead time to properly announce and market the excursions, as well as firm commitments from all of the railroads involved before we could responsibly move forward. Every railroad involved viewed the proposed operation positively and expressed interest in seeing the venture come to fruition.”