VOLUNTEERS at a steam railway are celebrating passing the halfway mark as they aim to raise the £1.25m needed to extend the line and complete construction of the station at Broadway by 2018.

Just 12 weeks after the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR) president Pete Waterman OBE launched the share issue at the station on May 6, staff are delighted to have reached the important milestone already.

Chris Bristow, the volunteer finance director of the railway, said: “For a voluntary organisation like ours to attract such a flow of funds is extraordinary. This means that we are pressing ahead with ordering rail from British Steel at Scunthorpe as well as other materials.  

He continued to say that the railway is now also moving forward on with drainage and civil engineering works which have to be finished before the rest of the last mile of track goes down. 

“There are many heritage railways trying to raise money for a range of worthwhile projects but this must be one of the most successful in terms of public response.”  

If the railway can reach its 2018 target, it will be nearly six decades since the last time a train stopped at Broadway.

Lord Faulkner of Worcester, a patron of the railway and president of the Heritage Railway Association, said: “I believe that this illustrates that heritage railways have become a vital part of the country’s tourist economy.

“People who visit heritage railways go on to visit other tourist attractions, use local shops, stay in hotels and B and Bs and, indeed, enjoy all the region has to offer,” he added.

Visit gwsr.com for more information.