The Kingsbridge and District Light Railway

Following the recent attack on our beloved Kingsbridge ‘Little Train’ and the volunteer driver, I wanted to do something to help the local community to give back, to ensure the future running of the train, which is adored by so many of us.

This special feature in our town is run by donations and ticket sales alone, so it really is vital that the community, and visitors, support them. The team of volunteers who drive the train do so as often as they can.

The History

The original Kingsbridge Railway was created in the 1970s on the car park side of the estuary, and it existed until 1989.

By 1991, the track had fallen into disrepair. It was too close to the wall, which meant it kept falling down, meanwhile the roots of nearby trees were making the track untenable. The decision was taken to dismantle it.

In 2015, Steve Mammatt, a Director at the Kingsbridge Tourist Information Centre and local businessman, decided to lead a campaign to get the KDLR back up and running. When volunteering at the tourism office, he often heard people ask, ‘what happened to the little train?’ He did some investigating and found that with a little ingenuity, it could be brought back in a new location and with a few new features befitting the 21st century traveller!

While planning was in motion, Steve and a team of volunteers set about fundraising. Most of this came from sponsorship. Individuals and companies could sponsor a metre of the 300-metre track, for which they received a certificate in the style of an old fashioned stock bond. Larger donations came in the form of sponsoring a carriage for a three year period. They feature the name of the sponsor along the side. We even have sponsorship retro-style adverts at the stations, which collectively funded the locomotive. 

We also thought about the important things, like the names of the train stations. They were selected by members of the community who submitted their ideas. Along your journey you will see stops including Ria End (Kingsbridge Estuary isn’t actually an estuary, it’s a ria) – which usually gets a giggle.

After much planning and fundraising, and with thanks to the support of the town council, the South Hams District Council and lots of local volunteers, the brand new KDLR launched in 2018. It’s situated on the opposite side of the water to the original line, away from any trees that might disrupt it. By embedding the track into the pavement like a tram it has also prevented it from becoming a trip hazard. The train is one of only two solar powered railways in the world - the other being in Australia. It’s completely carbon neutral, and it even has an automated signal system designed and built by volunteers!

In the first five years the KDLR took over 100,000 passengers. It continues to go strong, and we are still introducing new features when we can! In 2020 we were able to add a permanent station thanks to ticket sales, and we hope to add more stations and an additional loop one day!