(Video APTN)

June 1960, and the Stepney steam engine is making a trial run between Sheffield Park and Hornstead Keynes in Sussex, England.

The route is part of the railway line that runs from East Grinstead to Calver Junction. It opened in 1882.

In 1955 British Railways attempted to close the line - condemning it as under-used and unprofitable.

And despite legal challenges from local residents the company managed to shut the line completely over the following 4 years.

But the Lewes & East Grinstead Railway Preservation Society were determined the line should remain in use.

They formed the Bluebell Society with the motto "preserving the puffer for posterity."

Initially intended as a museum railway, they negotiated a 5 year lease for the track at an initial cost of 34,000 pounds (54,000 USD) with an annual fee of 2,250 pounds (3560 USD).

The Stepney engine and a few carriages were bought from British Rail for 750 pounds (1185 USD).

On August 7th 1960 the Stepney made its first passenger journey on the newly reopened Bluebell Railway.

Locals flocked to the platforms to see the train off - which famously left 12 minutes late.

Many feared the excitement would only last that day, but by the end of October that year more than 15,000 passengers had used the line.

This prompted volunteers to set up the passenger railway line that still runs today.

The faithful old Stepney is still running full steam ahead along with 29 other steam engines.

An extension of the line from Horsted Keynes to Kingscote was completed in in 1994 and this year the volunteer group, now called the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society, was awarded the Queens Award for Voluntary Service - for outstanding work in the community.

Taking a trip on the Bluebell Railway is like stepping back into time.

The station is staffed by volunteers wearing old fashioned British rail uniforms, and has been painstakingly restored to give passengers a real feel of a bygone age.

Tickets are still stamped by hand - and there's not a single digital display to be seen.

Before the start of each journey, the Stepney engine needs to take in the water that will be heated into steam.

The burning furnace on the footplate makes for a hot and sooty journey. The railway uses about a tonne of coal a day on its engines.

Steamed up and ready to go, the train prepares to leave for the nine mile (14.5 km) journey to Kingscote via Horsted Keynes.

A return ticket costs 12.50 pounds (20 USD) for adults. Children travel for half price. First class tickets are also available for 28.00 pounds (44USD).

Steve Squires has been driving steam trains for more than 40 years.

"It's in many respects similar to a car. The controls are slightly different, but they all do similar things. We've got the regulator here which is very much like the throttle on a car. We've got the reverser here which is basically the gear stick and over here we've got the brake," he says.

On August 7th 50 years ago, driver Bill Brophy was at the controls on the foot plate. The former driver and shed master has now retired, but remains a trustee of Bluebell Railway.

He says driving a steam train is no easy job - it's hot, dirty and requires a lot of strength as well as skill. For him each journey is an achievement.

"Driving trains was in those days every schoolboy's dream and one of the reasons for that is if you've travelled on the footplate of a steam engine you'll notice it appeals to every sense you've got. You can hear it, you can see it, you can smell it, you can touch it, everything about it and it's a challenge. It's not an easy life to get one of these things along the track."

Nearly 200 000 people ride the Bluebell Railway each year. Many are senior citizens reminiscing of a time gone by. The train is also very popular with families and children.

"I just think it evokes memories of days gone past, and not being from the steam era it's nice to be able to see a train and experience it - how it would have been back in the day," says one visitor.

"It's a sense of power ain't it. Steam power. Fantastic," says another.

Adding to the bygone sounds of the the train chugging along the track and the steam shooting from the chimney are the volunteers. Each has their own story to tell.

Chris Cooper was involved in setting up the Bluebell Railway from the very start. Now a trustee, he is still responsible for coaches and works most days on the line.

"Over the years I've watched it grow. It's been a great privilege to watch it grow like it has. And there aren't many of us around who can say that. From that small beginning two carriages, two engines painted perhaps in the wrong colours we've got this great national heritage now - there's over a hundred railways now and do think I did something to help that along the line is a great privilege," he says.

Roger Price has been working on the railway for 40 years.

"If you see a train out on the line if it's pulled by a steam engine everybody stops and looks at it. Everybody waves at it. If you see the same train with a diesel engine on it nobody takes any notice at all."

After three 90 minute round trips, it's time for the Stepney to put to bed, but not before its final job of the day - reminding one lucky little girl just how special steam engines are.

"I watched how the driver does the?.how the driver drives," says visitor Polly Scott.

The Railway runs trains on the hour from 11am to 4pm between Sheffield Park and Kingscote.

A newly refurbished extension from Kingscote to East Grinstead is due to open in September this year.

The Bluebell Railway will be marking it's 50th birthday with a weekend of celebration and attractions including visiting engines and a major display of locomotive nameplates. The gala runs from 6th - 8th August 2010.