A £3m business case for the restoration of the horse tramway along the full length of the promenade will go before this month’s Tynwald sitting.

The price tag for the project has increased significantly.

Estimated costs including a 10% contingency totalled £1.89m last year but that contingency has now been increased to over 50%, resulting in a revised figures of £3,036,170.

Works are planned to be completed within 40 weeks, but will not start on site until at least six months after Tynwald gives funding approval.

The business case acknowledges the investment will not make a return but will fund a heritage tourist attraction, with rail tourism forming a significant part of the island’s economy and appeal.

It sets out three options - do nothing, extend the track to the War Memorial and reinstate the track to the Sea Terminal.

Recommending this third option, the business case says the full track will enhance the visitor experience of the horse tramway including for cruise ship visitors, boost passengers numbers and allow fares to be increased.

It says the project will position government as a ‘responsible guardian of an iconic and unique heritage asset’.

The motion tabled for this month’s Tynwald sitting will not seek funding approval and merely asks members to note the draft business case and ‘support its progress through the capital project procedures’.

Removal, realignment and replacement of the Douglas Bay horse tramway formed part of the promenade reconstruction scheme.

It had been intended to replace the full length of tramway but delays and increased costs led to the project being re-scoped and the tramway truncated at Broadway.

The business case notes: ‘It is not true to say that the money for the tramway was spent on other elements of the project. The tramway construction in the centre of the road was a costly and disruptive part of the project.’

Before the promenade refurbishment got under way in 2018, the horse trams carried around 80,000 visitors and generated an income of £140k.

In 2023, it carried just 45,000 passengers and generated income of £44k.

The business case estimates that a reinstated track and increased cruise ship visitors using the tram could increase passengers to over 100,000 a year.

This together with fare rises could see an income of around £135,000 per annum, it adds.

The business case says the reinstatement of the tramway track from Broadway to the Sunken Gardens will require long planned work by highways to improve and alter the level of the walkway in that area.

It says the track has already been procured, which reduces the price risk, but the rail cost will be booked to the project at purchase price.

The track was old when originally purchased and has remained exposed to the weather in storage since then, leaving it pitted with corrosion which will require remedial machine grinding.

Installation works will be scheduled outside of peak seasonal periods to reduce the impact of any construction works, notes the business case.