A MAJOR development could see the iconic Harry Potter steam train return to the tracks weeks after it was axed over safety concerns.
Last month, the much-loved service was suspended by operators West Coast Railways after they were told to fit a new central locking system to the carriage doors.
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The world-famous Jacobite train transports hundreds of thousands of tourists every year.
Historic carriages transport sightseers to Mallaig, Fort William, and over the Glenfinnan Viaduct.
The Jacobite shot to fame when it was used as the Hogwarts Express in the Harry Potter films.
The operators of the steam locomotive have now applied for an exemption from railway safety regulations in a bid to allow them to keep running the service, STV News reported.
They have written to the UK rail minister asking for intervention while their exemption application is considered.
A total of eight MPs have also written to minister of transport Hugh Merriman in support of the request to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to grant the temporary application.
It is understood that West Coast Railways will meet with the Department of Transport and push their case next week.
The service has operated under an exemption for more than 30 years which allows them to run with the style of carriages on the main lines.
This is typically not allowed.
The company suspended the Jacobite services last month as they await a verdict on being allowed to continue in its current state.
The Jacobite service is frequently described as the “greatest journey in the world” and anyone lucky enough to get a seat on the train has to make bookings months in advance.
It hosts more than 700 passengers a day, with stunning views from Fort William to Mallaig.
And it was recently voted as one of the best train journeys in the world.
The Jacobite Steam Train journey beat iconic trips including The Ghan in Australia, the Alaska Railroad in he USA and the Canadian which takes travellers from one side of Canada to the other.
However, the suspension of services is taking its toll on local businesses due to the lack of visitors.
Local business owner, Maria Wilson, told STV News: “Right now, we’ve maybe seen a third of the amount of people that we usually see.
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“Between this shop here and my shop in Mallaig we are suffering. The high street is emptier in Fort William. People don’t just come here to travel on the train and leave again.
“They stay in the hotels. They eat in the restaurants, they go to the pubs.”