Award is big toot for Billy

PUFFING BILLY was named as one of five winners of the 2006 Victorian Heritage Icon Awards last week.
The Victorian Heritage Icon Awards are an initiative of the National Trust in Victoria as part of its 50th birthday celebrations.
The aim of the awards is to capture public opinions on popular concepts of heritage, recognising items that may not have been covered by other registers or lists but are worthy for their role in the cultural development of the state.
Announcing the winners last week Planning Minister Rob Hulls said the awards provided an opportunity to celebrate buildings, places and events in Victoria.
He said the awards had been a wonderful opportunity for the Victorian community to be involved in identifying icons that have made an outstanding contribution to the state’s contemporary cultural identity.
Puffing Billy was recognised as a genuine relic of Victoria’s more leisurely days.
Judge and media personality Jill Singer said Victorians have a great affection for Puffing Billy and that for many generations had proven to have an enduring appeal to both young and old Victorians and visitors to the state.
Puffing Billy Tourist Railway Board chief executive officer Andrew Stephens said it was fantastic that Puffing Billy had been recognised by the National Trust as a heritage icon site.
Mr Stephens said many people who travel on Puffing Billy think of it as a wonderful ride, but what people don’t alway see is that it is a very big part of Victoria’s heritage.
He said this heritage icon award would open people eyes up to the fact that Puffing Billy is one of Victoria’s five key heritage assets. Mr Stephens said a lot of the recognition should go to the volunteers and workers who work to maintain the railway.