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Our robustly designed and manufactured narrow gauge railway locomotives and carriages provide a perfect solution for carrying passengers of all ages at leisure, park and farm attractions, whether as a ride or as a transport system.
With 50 years experience in this demanding market, Alan Keef Ltd can guide you through all of the crucial considerations in designing a successful attraction or transport system. We supply equipment for a number of gauges and, as well as traditional steam and modern, 'clean-diesel' powered trains, we now also specialise in the latest battery-electric technologies too.
Whilst we offer a range of 'standard' narrow gauge railway designs, our experienced and creative design team have the expertise and passion needed to adapt these, or indeed create a new narrow gauge railway design to match any styling or site specific requirements
Electric propulsion lends itself particularly to underground applications and we have significant experience in specifying, manufacturing and installing underground narrow gauge railways - take a look through our gallery pages below to see the wide range of railways we've been involved with.
If you’re considering a narrow gauge railway for your leisure, park or farm attraction, there are many factors to take into account. Our friendly and knowledgeable guidance will help you assess and evaluate the most suitable railway for your needs:
Below is a small selection of images of the narrow gauge railways that we have designed and installed or worked on over the last 50 years. Our complete gallery can be viewed clicking the link at the bottom of the page.
Using the latest battery-electric technology, this new locomotive arrived in California in 2021 and has been a great success.
Using the latest battery-electric technology, this new locomotive arrived in California in 2021 and has been a great success.
The new Lithium-ion battery-electric locomotive is shown here operating at the 15" gauge Sonoma Traintown Railroad in California following commissioning in August 2021. The locomotive is highly efficient and capable of carrying around 1400 passengers a day with no need to recharge the battery in-between trips.
The sliding, roll-back cab feature allows the driver to access the driving position with ease. Charging the locomotive is as simple as plugging it into the wall - for this railway this is done just once, at the end of the day and left charging overnight, which ensures a complete charge ready for another day. Careful surveying of the site and the resulting calculations, ensure the battery is calibrated to be as efficient as it can be, saving both time and money.
This was a turn-key project for a locomotive and carriages including the design, supply and installation of over half a kilometre of track through protected woodland.
This was a turn-key project for a locomotive and carriages including the design, supply and installation of over half a kilometre of track through protected woodland.
Against the classic Scottish backdrop of Ayton Castle, an 0-6-0 diesel hydraulic locomotive, ‘Lloyd’ (AK109/20), and two bogie carriages will carry guests through the grounds of the estate to the Castle. Supplied as a turn-key project, this new 800m, 10¼” gauge railway was installed in a particularly sensitive landscape.
The railway’s track was thoroughly planned with extensive liaison with the project’s landscape architects and arboriculturalists. The track was carefully and painstakingly laid through the woodland area to minimise impact on the trees’ root systems. By slighly elevating the track bed and carefully packing the sleepers, the finished result is a railway that treads only lightly in its environment.
Ayton Castle has been newly renovated throughout with careful reference to its listed status. A classic deep blue and red livery was chosen by the client to suit the rest of the Castle’s stunning styling.
Easy-ride bogies ensure the locomotive and carriages offer a smooth and very comfortable ride for operators and passengers. The locomotive itself is fitted with a reliable, low emission, compact Perkins EU Stage V, US Tier 4 diesel engine, coupled to a hydrastatic drive. Together delivering single-lever, highly responsive dynamic control. Overall, the locomotive’s controls have been kept simple and intuitive to use. The engine is designed to require only minimal day-to-day maintenance and checks with just an annual service required to keep it running reliably year after year.
The locomotive and carriages with passengers illustrates the relatively spacious nature of the carriages for children and adults alike. Set low over the easy-ride bogies that are a hallmark of our design, the carriages are highly stable in use, and offer a smooth and very comfortable ride
A brand new locomotive and set of three carriages for the 1m gauge, 4km scenic Beauport Railway on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe
A brand new locomotive and set of three carriages for the 1m gauge, 4km scenic Beauport Railway on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe
Sugar cane has long been harvested across the Caribbean and the plantation at Beauport on the island of Guadeloupe is one of a handful that have turned to offering tourists a chance to explore these old plantations.
Alan Keef Ltd was awarded a tender in 2019 to design and build a completely new diesel locomotive together with three carriages ready for the 2020 tourist season. Delivery and commissioning of this project during a global pandemic proved a unique challenge that no-one could have predicted!
The project to bring a new train set to the Beauport site was a major investment for the Caribbean island as the plantation is a major tourist attraction to the mainly French visitors. The locomotive and carriages are very much at home in the Caribbean with traditional colours that look stunning in the bright clear sunshine.
Although Guadeloupe is a French territory with a very familiar European feel, its location means that it has to be almost entirely self-sufficient when it comes to maintenance of its infrastructure. The locomotive is built to be robust to ensure maintenance is manageable given the limited engineering resources on the island. The commissioning trip in 2020 by a small team of our engineers, included training the railway’s staff in the routine maintenance regime of the locomotive.
The carriage roofs were designed with a considerable overhang to provide shade and keep passengers cool, however when it rains in Guadeloupe... it pours. Each carriage is fitted with transparent weather blinds that can be quickly and easily released to keep passengers dry before being stowed away again.
A new battery-electric locomotive and set of carriages has been supplied to the 10¼” Delamont Miniature Railway that has run at Delamont Country Park in Northern Ireland for over 20 years.
A new battery-electric locomotive and set of carriages has been supplied to the 10¼” Delamont Miniature Railway that has run at Delamont Country Park in Northern Ireland for over 20 years.
The railway runs for approximately 1km through the park, departing and arriving back at a platform with its popular ‘station’ cafe. The design of the original open carriages meant that the railway had appealed mostly to families with young children. Alan Keef Ltd specified, designed and built a new battery powered ‘steam outline’ locomotive and four carriages including an easily accessed disabled carriage. The new train will now allow elderly and less mobile park visitors to travel in comfort and ease whilst the covered carriages mean the railway can be enjoyed whatever the weather!
Our battery locomotives are programmed during commissioning to optimise battery performance and minimise charging intervals. The Delamont Country Park locomotive took 65 trips (around 60km) over its first weekend of operation with no requirement to charge the battery.
Our carriages offer deep seats and double-slat open backs which offer passengers a more comfortable ride than solid seats and backs. This is of particular importance for elderly and less mobile passengers. All of our timber seats are made from sustainable hardwood too! The disabled carriage (shown on the left) offers a wide and easy-to-use drop-down ramp for wheelchair access.
It’s what’s under our carriages that really sets them apart though. 50 years’ experience of our tried, tested and trusted design ensures each carriage offers the smoothest possible ride for all passengers, young and old alike.
We keep the controls simple and intuitive to ensure operators can be trained easily, even with no prior railway experience. Once the railway closes, the battery locomotive is simply plugged in to start overnight charging - just as you would an electric car. Owner of the Delamont Miniature Railway, James Barclay, commented on how easy and efficient the locomotive was to operate and also how much cleaner it was compared to his steam and diesel powered locomotives.
In 2022 we delivered a third new locomotive to Longleat Safari Park whom we're proud to have enjoyed a working relationship with for just short of five decades!
In 2022 we delivered a third new locomotive to Longleat Safari Park whom we're proud to have enjoyed a working relationship with for just short of five decades!
This latest locomotive was delivered along with a new style carriage ready for trials through the summer. Sporting Longleat's traditional deep red livery, the new locomotive has a highly efficient, low-emission, diesel powered engine. The carriage is a prototype featuring improved passenger space and comfort, wheelchair access and colour changing LED lighting.
The 15" gauge track navigates the park, running alongside the Capability Brown designed lake and adjacent woodland, and we continue to work through a scheduled, comprehensive track relaying programme.
An ambitious development programme for Audley End Miniature Railway has included the design and supply of fourteen new carriages and an extensive program to relay the track.
An ambitious development programme for Audley End Miniature Railway has included the design and supply of fourteen new carriages and an extensive program to relay the track.
Two sets of seven carriages were supplied to carry their rapidly increasing passenger numbers. The bogie design of our carriages, together with relaying the track to smooth curves and gradients, has resulted in a far more comfortable ride for passengers travelling around this unique park set in the Audley End Estate where the young visitors are encouraged to seek out their teddy bear friends.
The carriages feature LED strip lighting to ensure the carriages can be used safely during the winter season - essential for their popular Halloween and Christmas events which have attracted over 50,000 visitors. When needed, less able passengers in wheelchairs can be comfortably and easily accommodated too.
Everything at Audley End is done with a great eye to detail and so when even our track team were immortalised as teddy bears, we were delighted! Work on the track continues with the latest phase completed in early 2022.