THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway re-opens for business on Saturday, March 4.

This popular volunteer-run steam and heritage diesel railway, which operates over 13 miles between Cheltenham Racecourse in the south and to a point half way between Toddington and Broadway in the north, carried more than 100,000 passengers last year.

The railway's 870 volunteers have not been resting during the winter recess.

Significant maintenance work has been carried out on the line, including vital drainage works at Woodmancote and elsewhere, undergrowth clearance, bridge maintenance and track refurbishment, including moving a set of points at Winchcombe to allow for longer trains.

There has also been a huge maintenance and refurbishment programme to bring the railway's fleet of steam and diesel locomotives, as well as carriages, into tip-top condition.

Colin Fewell, the railway's volunteer commercial director, is confident that the line will do even better during 2017 than it did last year.

“We smashed all sorts of records year last year and we expect to do even better this year with some fantastic special events that will appeal to families and enthusiasts," he said.

“Among them is a brand-new Cotswold Bricks and Trains weekend organised by the Southern Lego Train Club who will be putting on displays of what can be achieved with the popular plastic bricks – and opportunities to have a go yourself.

“Our really popular crowd-pullers will also be repeated including Days Out with Thomas, Wartime in the Cotswolds, the Cotswold Festival of Steam, and diesel weekends.

The railway's popular fish and chip evenings, Teddy Bear Tuesdays and real ale weekends are also once again in the calendar.

"We'll be running public services on almost 190 days during 2017 and that's quite apart from special days such as the Cheltenham Festival race trains, which are fully booked, and opportunities to experience your hands on the controls at steam and diesel footplate experience days,” he said.