The Leighton Buzzard Light Railway was constructed in 1919 to carry sand from pits near the town about three miles to the main line. The railway used steam locomotives for a short while, then Simplex petrol locomotives, and finally Simplex diesels. Sand traffic declined from the late 1950s until it ceased in 1981. In the 1960s enthusiasts realised there was a railway idle at weekends and obtained permission to run passenger trains and over the years since then the preservation society has evolved and this heritage railway now operates a varied collection of historic steam and non-steam locomotives. This new third edition describes the railway’s history and other local railways which mainly served sand pits.