A NEW exhibition has opened in one of York’s most treasured museums.

The National Railway Museum (NRM) launched ‘Communities’ – its final installation in a temporary technology and innovation programme – which runs from March to August 2024.

This new season showcases the role of railways in keeping communities connected and how they can adapt to meet people’s needs through innovation.


Read next:

Rock and art-pop ‘pioneers’ add North Yorkshire to 2024 world tour schedule

Award-winning Yorkshire attraction opens up for new season

Musician traces development of debut pop album through York's music scene


NRM interpretation developer Susana De Anda Amador said: “We have included a range of objects in the final season of Innovation Platform to show the impact of technology on the railways but also how people interact with the railways in their community.”

York Press: The Innovation Platform at the National Railway MuseumThe Innovation Platform at the National Railway Museum (Image: Jason Hynes)

Highlights include a display of a passenger assistance app designed to help those who may find travel difficult, a digital totem screen which has been deployed across the rail network and a crowd monitoring system which uses Artificial Intelligence to alert operators to incidents in real time.

The role of community protest is illustrated through a 32-metre long section of ‘train bunting’, with 50 embroidered train coaches highlighting the impact of fare rises on communities and drawn from a 2011 petition.

To find out more, visit: www.railwaymuseum.org.uk/whats-on/innovation-platform