The UK's highest railway, owned by a leading Scottish Government economic development agency, will not be ready for the winter season as problems continue to dog the beleaguered structure which has been shut for nearly six years years since 2018.

Concerns have previously been raised about the future of the Cairngorm railway after a series of false dawns. It was shut for an indefinite period last year and was not available for the last winter season.

It emerged in April that a programme of remedial works was to enter a new phase and was likely to take months to complete.

There was an aim to have it back in service for the start of the snow sports season this month.

But now owner, the Scottish Government Highland and Islands Enterprise agency, has confirmed that it will not be back in service for the official launch of Cairngorm Mountain’s 2024/25 winter season on December 20 as had been hoped.

The funicular railway now looks set to be back in action towards the end of December or early in the new year.

Contractor Balfour Beatty has confirmed that, weather permitting, its current programme of remediation works on the viaduct that supports the railway is due to finish in the next week to 10 days, after which teams working for the company plan to demobilise from the mountainside.

READ MORE: Apologies as beleaguered Cairngorm railway remains shut

The focus will then shift to a series of important follow-up actions that have to be carried out before the funicular can carry passengers again. These include mechanical safety inspections and testing, trial runs and staff training.

But HIE said it "does appear" that the long wait for the service to resume and enable visitors to access the ski area quickly and easily by rail again will soon be over.

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Calls have previously been made for a public inquiry after it was confirmed that safety issues were continuing to dog the UK's highest railway, which was taken out of service initially to deal with a series of 'snagging' works which meant it was due back in action at the start of September, last year. But over a year later, it remains out of action.

The development has become a familiar theme for the key facility for the Cairngorms, which is a major Scottish tourism attraction and centre for recreation with downhill hillwalking and rock climbing a major draw for the 1.92m who visit the national park annually.

The crucial funicular, which was opened in 2001 and connects a base station with a restaurant and a ski area 1,097m (3,599ft) up Cairn Gorm mountain near Aviemore, was first closed in September 2018 due to structural issues.

HIE had at one point included a provision of £14.3m for the cost of reinstating the funicular which had been expected to take two years.

But the costs of the troubled railway have ended up costing at least three-and-a-half times the original estimate.

The urgent repairs rose by a third from £16m to £21.5m, according to he last estimate.

The faults were discovered after the costs of building the funicular spiralled from £14.8m to £26.75m.

According to the Cairngorm National Park Authority strengthening works after issues to the railway viaduct had emerged five years ago, involved reinforcing props and concrete bases beside 63 out of 94 piers.

It finally came back into action in January, last year, after a four-year hiatus - but then promptly closed "temporarily" nine months later.

Eleven days after the works were hoped to be completed "relatively quickly" at the end of August, it emerged that it would not be back up and running until the end of September.

The agency later said the scale and complexity of the project, which includes continuous testing to ensure public safety, had led it to revise its schedule to complete the job to mid-October.

In mid-October, HIE said the works to resolve the issues would have to continue into November and apologised to visitors.

Then the railway was not expected to be ready for the start of the Cairngorm season on December 22 and its return to action was classed as indefinite.

The prime area of focus were hundreds of ‘scarf joints’ linking beams and piers along the 1.7km viaduct These were installed as part of a major reinstatement programme that ran for just over two years from November 2020.

In addition, testing was carried out on tensioning works to beams and diaphragms that were also installed as part of the reinstatement programme and remedial action will be taken as required.

HIE said: "The return to service will mark the end of a difficult few years for HIE and its subsidiary Cairngorm Mountain (Scotland) Ltd, which operates the resort."

(Image: Cairngorm Mountain (Scotland) Ltd (CMSL))

Activists who have been following the state of the railway have been raising the matter with transport minister Fiona Hyslop asking her to reconsider the safety of the funicular before it is re-opened.

One said that the continuing issues with the funicular were "not surprising".

He said: "Like the issues with Scotland's ferries, there is a feeling of being punch drunk with the number of false dawns there have been for the railway. We can only hope that when it does open, it will be okay. It remains the case that the farcical situation regarding the funicular should be a matter for a public inquiry."

The latest decision to close the railway last year came after the leading Scottish Government economic development agency concluded a court action against constructors and designers over structural problems. HIE said that it had received £11m after settling the court action.

It had been pursuing a £14.5m claim against the company that owns Morrisons Construction and the civil and structural engineers for the scheme.

The agency made claims over defects in the design and construction of the railway and breaches of contracts that emerged after the funicular was forced to shut five years ago.

News of the long-running case emerged in 2021 when it was revealed that ministers had to refund part of an EU grant for the original Cairngorm funicular because of discrepancies in the way it tendered for the work as costs spiralled.

The funicular viaduct supports the railway that ascends Cairn Gorm to an altitude of over 1,000m.

Originally opened in 2001, it operates two carriages carrying visitors between the Cairngorm base station and Ptarmigan building, which houses a restaurant, shop, exhibition and viewing platform.

During winter, it is the main form of uplift to enable skiers and snowboarders to access higher parts of the mountain.