PASSENGER figures for the South Devon Railway were up last year.

The total number of passengers using the heritage railway, based in Buckfastleigh, during 2016 was 103,906 – a 6.9 per cent increase on the 2015 total of 97,200.

Dick Wood, of the railway, said: ‘This is a welcome increase and shows a good season for us as expected.

‘Revenue from the trains business was also above the £1million mark for the second year running too, at £1.14 million.

‘We also saw a big increase in the groups market of just over 100 per cent, on both numbers and revenue, and a good spike too in our Thomas event and joint tickets with the Totnes Rare Breeds Farm and Dartmoor Otters and Buckfast Buttlerflies.’

The total figure for the year is based on the core, mainstream passenger traffic of 97,041 plus a further 6,865 people carried on ancillary traffic, specials and charters, including Rotary Santa trains; fish and chip trains; one-off train hires; and footplate experience passengers.