The Exploration Place is seeking $13,500 from the City of Prince George to keep the Little Prince on the tracks.
Last year the museum and the Fort George Railway Society got the miniature steam train running again after four years in the shed. The 1912 Davenport engine was used during the construction of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, which reached Prince George in 1914.
Since 1975 it has operated on a half-mile track in Fort George Park.
Last year the city provided a $5,000 operating grant and $7,261 in one-time funding to get the train running again, Exploration Place CEO Tracy Calogheros said. Although the cost of operating the train in 2012 is anticipated at $9,000 less than 2011, and revenues are projected to be $7,000 higher due to an increase in fares, there is still a shortfall.
Nor can The Exploration Place afford to subsidize the train, which is a city asset, Calogheros said.
There are increased costs for training and labour in the 2012 budget, she said, to ensure there is enough staff to run the train.
"I ended up being a ticket taker and conductor - I can't do that every year," Calogheros said. "[And] there are things with operating a 100-year-old engine and approximately a kilometre of track ... if they happen, I don't know where the money will come from."
City council referred the issue to city staff for discussion during the budget process.
