The royal train will soon leave the station for the last time.

The King has accepted it’s time to decommission the train, whose history dates from Queen Victoria, because it costs too much to operate and would have needed a significant upgrade for more advanced rail systems, Buckingham Palace says.

“In moving forwards we must not be bound by the past,” James Chalmers, the palace official in charge of the King’s financial affairs, said on Tuesday (British time).

“Just as so many parts of the royal household’s work have modernised and adapted to reflect the world of today, so too the time has come to bid the fondest of farewells, as we seek to be disciplined and forward-looking in our allocation of funding.”

The train, which is actually a suite of nine railcars that can be hitched to commercial locomotives, will be decommissioned sometime before the current maintenance contract expires in 2027.

That will bring to an end a tradition that dates to 1869, when Queen Victoria commissioned a pair of special coaches for her travels.

The decision was announced during the palace’s annual briefing for reporters on the royal finances.

The royal family will for the fourth consecutive year receive public funding of £86.3 million ($A180 million), including £34.5 million to fund the remodelling of Buckingham Palace, in the 12 months to March 2026.

This money comes from a mechanism known as the Sovereign Grant, which sets aside 12 per cent of the net income from the Crown Estate to fund the official duties of the King and other members of the royal family.

The Crown Estate is a portfolio of properties owned by the monarch during his reign. They are professionally managed and the King cannot dispose of the assets.

The royal finances remain a topic of public debate, with the King pledging to slim down the monarchy and cut costs as he seeks to ensure the institution’s survival.

Buckingham Palace was quick to point out that while the Sovereign Grant had been unchanged for the past four years, inflation had eroded its value.

If the grant had increased in line with inflation, it would have been about £106 million in 2025, the palace said.

The basic grant was supplemented with £21.5 million of income generated by properties outside the Crown Estate.

This income increased by £1.7 million, driven by a record year for visitors to Buckingham Palace and special tours of the newly renovated East Wing.

-AAP