FOR the third year running, the West Somerset Railway has been awarded a top Railway of the Year accolade. In 2004 it was voted the Ian Allan Publishing Independent Railway of the Year, in 2005 it received the Heritage Railway award and now in 2006 it has once again won the Ian Allan trophy. WSR general manager Paul Conibeare said: "The Ian Allan judges pay an incognito visit to each of the preserved railways around the country, buy tickets and spend the day travelling as members of the public, with an interest in railways who are having a day out. "They judge us on the quality of our service, the presentation and helpfulness of our staff, the stations, the catering, the toilets and the day as a whole. "Nor have we got the field to ourselves - there are nearly 200 heritage railways in Britain, all working to present themselves as a quality day out to their customers, so to win a major award for three years in a row speaks volumes for the hard work put in by every member of our team of volunteers and staff." Mr Conibeare added: "Since I took over the general manager's chair in March, there have been some highly significant developments that will affect the railway and the area we serve for years to come. "Probably the most important is the completion of the upgrade of the signalling at the junction at Norton Fitzwarren to improve access to and from the main line network. "We have already seen a major increase in the number of charter trains coming in to Minehead and two charter trains going out while the diesel shuttles that were operated by First Great Western trains during our Autumn Steam Gala in October were very successful and showed our continuing ability to deal with regular operations between ourselves and main line companies." Plans for 2007 include the 'Mixed Traffic Gala Weekend' on June 15-17, and a 'Walking Week' in May as well as the popular steam enginemen introduction courses.