Great Western Coffee Shop

Britain's once-threatened branch lines are enjoying a boom thanks to 'staycation' holidays.

Figures compiled for The Sunday Telegraph show many routes earmarked for closure in the 1960s Beeching cuts are enjoying annual passenger growth well above the average across the railways, with rises of up to 55 per cent. The increases have been attributed to tourism traffic as recession-hit Britons opt for traditional seaside holidays instead of flying abroad. Seven of the 10 fastest-growing branch lines serve seaside resorts. Traffic on the scenic St Erth to St Ives line in Cornwall, recommended for closure by Dr Beeching, rose 15.5 per cent in 2009/10 compared to the previous year. The number of passenger journeys between Preston and Blackpool South rose by 13.8 per cent.

Alex Veitch, Integrated Transport Manager for the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC), said: "There is no doubt that the 'staycation' trend of holidaying at home has been a major factor. These branch line figures match existing research that shows summer traffic was significantly up at tourism 'destination' stations such Edinburgh and Oxford. With more holidays in Britain, many resorts are busier and it seems people have realised it is less hassle to get the train and the journey can be part of the holiday experience."

Official figures, due to be published on Thursday, are expected to show the number of rail passenger journeys in Britain in 2009/10 was similar to the previous year, ending almost 15 years of spectacular growth. But although the number of commuter journeys has dropped during the recession, branch lines have enjoyed remarkable growth, according to statistics supplied to The Sunday Telegraph by ATOC. Traffic between Par and Newquay in Cornwall grew 55 per cent after demand from stay-at-home holidaymakers prompted First Great Western to add direct daily trains from London.

Passenger journeys on the line between Oxenholme and Windermere in the Lake District, once slated for closure by Dr Beeching, rose 9.9 per cent.

Julian Crow, regional manager of First Great Western, said: "All the signs are that this summer is going to be even busier than last year when we saw significant increases. It is great news for everyone. In St Ives, which has narrow streets, the growth means more visitors than ever are arriving by rail rather than adding to road congestion."

The success has also been attributed to Community Rail Partnerships in which rail companies, local councils and volunteers join to promote passenger interest and investment in improvements.

On the Truro to Falmouth line, which had the third-highest growth, traffic rose 37.8 per cent after an extra platform was built to allow more trains.

"The fact is, many branch lines are providing their best ever service," said Richard Burningham, manager of the Devon & Cornwall Rail Partnership. "There is this notion of a golden age of steam trains but St Ives and Falmouth have never had a more frequent service in their history and people are starting to notice that and make use of their local train service, not just on holiday but throughout the year."

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The 10 fastest-growing Community Rail Lines (2009/10 percentage increase over 2008/09)

Par ^ Newquay (First Great Western (FGW)) 54.80%

Derby ^ Matlock (East Midlands) 42%

Truro ^ Falmouth (FGW) 37.80%

Bristol Temple Meads ^ Severn Beach (FGW) 16.90%

St Erth ^ St Ives (FGW) 15.50%

Preston ^ Blackpool South (Northern) 13.80%

Liskeard ^ Looe (FGW) 13.10%

Exeter ^ Barnstaple (FGW) 11.60%

Oxenholme ^ Windermere (First TransPennine Express) 9.90%

Plymouth ^ Gunnislake (FGW) 9.10%

you know what... the cost of a couple of loco hauled sets could be shared along with the revenue if fgw and tpe worked together, it may even get approved seeing that xc doesnt seem that interested in getting any more people on its trains

they already have.... but given the fun they had with the taunton to cardiff service that may not work lol

This surge, which was revealed in the research gathered by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC), has been put down to recession-hit Brits opting for beach holidays over fights abroad as well as investment to increase the frequency and capacity of local services.