An extension to the Ropley Miniature Railway - next to the Watercress Line at Ropley station - was opened at midday on September 13.

Watercress Line trustee Graham Sumner performed the ribbon cutting ceremony accompanied by chief executive Rebecca Dalley and president Air Vice Marshal Richard Lacey.

The extension through the adjacent Four Acre Field is around 143 yards long and brings the 10.25-inch gauge miniature railway’s total length to approximately 550 yards.

Undergrowth was cut back along the entire length of the extension. The track bed is a trench 30 inches wide by nine inches deep, lined with a semi-permeable membrane and filled with six inches of crushed concrete plus three inches of ballast, all of which was compacted into a stable base.

Each track panel is 19ft 8in long and a total of 21 and a half of them were laid and ballasted. A platform for a halt at the end of the line was also built. The extension was constructed in ten days, consisting of three working sessions of two, four and four days.

Ray Briscall - a volunteer for the Mid-Hants Miniature Railway Group, which runs the Ropley Miniature Railway - said: “Thanks are due to the team that worked so hard on this project, Richard Matthews’ father for the loan of the digger, and Bernie Dench for providing the full size sleepers used for the platform edge.

“For the opening train we used our newest and oldest locos currently operational on site. Heading the train was the class 67, which has only recently entered service following an extensive rebuild. On the tail of the train was Patricia, which was the second loco we acquired and dates from the late 1950s.

“Future plans for Four Acre Field include a turntable and a run round loop at the new halt.”