Dartmouth Steam Railway

Dartmouth Steam Railway
Locale	Paignton, Devon, England
Terminus	Kingswear
Commercial operations
Name	Kingswear branch
Built by	Dartmouth and Torbay Railway
Original gauge	7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm) Brunel gauge until 1892
Preserved operations
Operated by	Dart Valley Railway Limited
Stations	5
Length	6.7 miles (10.8 km)
Preserved gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Commercial history
Opened	1859
10 August 1864	Line completed
21 May 1892	Converted to 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Closed	28 October 1972
Preservation history
30 December 1972	Sold to Dart Valley Railway
1981	Turntable moved to Churston
2011	Heritage Festival marking 150 years of the line reaching Churston
2012	Greenway Halt opens to the Public
2012	New station building at Paignton opens
Headquarters	Paignton
Website
www.dartmouthrailriver.co.uk

The Dartmouth Steam Railway, formerly known as the Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway, is a 6.7-mile (10.8 km) heritage railway on the former Great Western Railway branch line between Paignton and Kingswear in Devon, England. Much of the railway's business is from summer tourists from the resorts of Torbay, who travel to Kingswear, where the Dartmouth Passenger Ferry takes them across the River Dart to Dartmouth.

The line is owned and operated by Dart Valley Railway Limited. This company also owns Dart Pleasure Craft Limited, which operates the Dartmouth Passenger Ferry as well as river and coastal cruises.^[1][2] The railway and connecting boat and bus services are jointly promoted as the Dartmouth Steam Railway and River Boat Company.

Unusually amongst heritage railways, it is a commercial operation which does not rely on volunteer labour or charitable donations, although a few volunteers help at Churston railway station.