Great Whipsnade Railway and is manned by platform staff during train operation. The Whipsnade Central station has an old-fashioned signal box which can be seen when leaving or approaching the station platform. Great Whipsnade Railway The Great Whipsnade Railway, also known as The Jumbo Express, is an English, narrow gauge heritage railway that operates within ZSL Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire, England. Construction of the railway started in 1970 and the initial line opened on 26 August 1970. The line provided rides within the animal enclosures and an additional attraction in its own right. Originally called the Whipsnade and Umfolozi Railway, it began as
Whipsnade Zoo Kaylee's female calf Donna, and Azizah's male calf Sam. Their paddock is seven acres, and features three pools, mud wallows and dust baths. One of the female elephants, named Karishma, and her pregnancy with her first calf George, featured heavily in the first series of the ITV documentary programme "The Zoo", which follows the daily lives of the staff at both Whipsnade and London Zoo. Another female calf was born during the Queens birthday celebrations and was aptly named Elizabeth. The elephant herd has a brand new indoor facility, the Centre for Elephant Care, which opened in Easter of 2017.