Network Rail’s Anglia region has invited the public to send in digital versions of their home-made pictures of rainbows with a railway theme to be displayed at London Liverpool Street station and on screens at stations across Anglia.
Displaying railway-themed rainbows will lift the mood of station teams, NHS staff and key workers who are still relying on the railway to get to and from work.
The Railway Rainbows project is open to all ages and follows a similar initiative many people have adopted across the country, where they draw rainbows and place them in the windows of their homes. Selected designs will be displayed digitally on the information display screens at London Liverpool Street station and other stations across the Anglia region for the entirety of the coronavirus crisis.
London Liverpool Street station manager Emma Watson said: “With fewer people using the station, our usually busy and lively environment can now seem unsettling and lonely for people who still need to travel to work.
“While we’re busy enabling those to travel who need to, we want to lift the mood in our stations, creating a welcoming and positive atmosphere with everyone’s rainbow pictures. We hope lots of people get behind this initiative to support our NHS and key workers.”
Meanwhile, station teams at Bristol Temple Meads, Reading and London Paddington have already received dozens of pictures of railway-themed rainbows since launching their appeal earlier this month.
Although many Railway Rainbows already been received, the station teams are asking the public to keep sending them in. All the drawings received will be put up at the stations for the entirety of the coronavirus crisis, with some being displayed permanently as a constant reminder to frontline workers for all their amazing efforts.
Mustaq Haji, Network Rail’s station manager at London Paddington, said: “Thank you so much to everyone who has sent us their Railway Rainbows so far. They have already brightened up the station and been noticed by passengers including NHS staff, who have commented on them.”
Andy Phillips, Network Rail’s station manager at Reading and Bristol Temple Meads, said: “We are grateful for the number of Railway Rainbows that we have received so far.
“The rainbows are being displayed across both stations and it is great to see the constant message of spreading positivity to those who continue to rely on the railway to make essential journeys.
“We would love to see even more Railway Rainbows so please keep sending them to us, we really appreciate it.”
Network Rail is asking people to submit their artwork by sharing it on Twitter with @networkrailLST (for London Liverpool Street) or @networkrailwest (for Paddington, Reading or Bristol) using the hashtag #RailwayRainbows. Entrants should specify which station they would like to receive their rainbow and should also include their name and age, although this is not compulsory.
