The series was produced by Britt Allcroft and Rick Siggelkow. It incorporated sequences from the British television show Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends. The series aired on PBS from January 29, 1989, until June 11, 1993, with four hour-long "Family Specials" premiering in primetime throughout 1995. The Shining Time Station is a fictional train station on the Indian Valley Railroad in an unknown part of the United States.