SVR donations now at £552k
Donations for the storm-hit Severn Valley Railway have reached a staggering £552,000 – leaving it only around £100,000 shy of meeting its target for repairs.
The bill is expected to exceed £3 million to get the Bewdley-based tourist attraction back on track following the summer floods which caused widespread damage.
A combination of the railway's own insurance, grant aid from Advantage West Midlands and the European Regional Dev-elopment Fund totalling around £1.25million, and the appeal fund meant most of the neccesary cash was already in place.
Railway bosses estimate they will now need approximately £100,000 to bridge the funding gap but say the figure could change as repair work continues.
The flood damage appeal was launched in June and donations have come in thick and fast from thousands of fundraisers and well-wishers across the Midlands and elsewhere in the country.
They included six-year-old Thomas Blyth from Bewd-ley, who donated his pocket money of £6.78 in August.
At the other end of the scale, bosses received a cheque for £10,000 from a railway enthusiast, in Harpenden, Hertfordshire.
Marketing manager, John Leach, said: "The amount of money that has been raised is absolutely fantastic. We are very grateful to everybody who has contributed.
"We are continuing to make good progress with all the repair work and are still on track to open the whole line on Good Friday."
There will be celebrations this Saturday with staff on course to reopen the northern section of 16-mile line between Bridgnorth and Hampton Loade.
The steam railway has only been able to run trains on a short section of the track between Kidderminster and Bewdley since the floods caused damage in 45 places along the line.
For train times or to donate to the flood appeal contact 01299 403816.
