A railway line which has been shut for more than 40 years is to re-open.

Passengers on the Bluebell Railway will be able to travel by steam train to East Grinstead for the first time since the 1960s.

The railway already operates along a nine-mile stretch of the old Lewes to East Grinstead line between Sheffield Park and Kingscote and the line will now be extended by an extra two miles.

Infrastructure director Christopher White said the scheme would bring many benefits.

He said: "It will open up an area of outstanding natural beauty and will open up East Grinstead to more tourism. It will also enable trains from the national railway network to travel along the line for special occasions."

Shoppers and commuters will also be able to use one of the regular services to get to and from East Grinstead from other stations on the line.

The railway, which is largely run by volunteers, has been in negotiations with West Sussex County Council for years to obtain the land needed to re-open the line.

They now need to raise £4million to clear a rubbish tip which was built over part of the line at Imberhorne Lane after it was closed in the 1960s as part of Government reforms.

The railway, which is listed as a public limited company, will sell shares to the general public in order to raise part of the cash.

The scheme will also include a new station at East Grinstead.

A planning application submitted to Mid Sussex District Council includes a seven-coach platform with a booking office and station facilities. The station will be between the current Network Rail station and the viaduct.

If everything goes to plan the new line could be running by the end of 2008.

The first section of the Bluebell Railway re-opened in 1960, preserving the line between Sheffield Park and Horsted Keynes. The track was extended to West Hoathly in 1992 and Kingscote in 1994.

The railway has already commissioned repair work on the Imberhorne viaduct, over which the line will run. Workmen repaired brickwork, waterproofed of the structure and replaced the coping stones which had been dislodged by vandals. Volunteer teams also cleared the trackbed of dumped machinery, trees and a pond, and installed drainage and fences.