KENT Police have questioned a 20-year-old motorist involved in the weekend tragedy which claimed the life of a woman train driver on Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway.

The motorist's silver coloured Vauxhall and the miniature railway train collided at a level crossing near Dungeness on Sunday evening.

The car driver has been released on police bail while further investigations are carried out.

The woman who died in the crash has been named as 43-year-old Suzanne Martin, wife of the general manager of the railway, Danny Martin. The train was derailed in the smash.

Mrs Martin had worked at railway since she was a teenager. She was a volunteer and also a paid employee and was proud to become the first female train driver at the railway.

She met her husband when they were both in their teens.

Police said several passengers were on board the train but nobody else was hurt.

It is the second fatal incident on the track during the last two years. In August, 2003 a male train driver died at a level crossing after colliding with a car.

A landlord in Dungeness has spoken of the shock after the car collided with the miniature steam train metres from his pub.

Niko Miaoulis, of the Pilot, was first on the scene after the steam train derailed and jackknifed at a level crossing on Battery Road.

He said: "I was just sitting down when I heard this huge crunching noise and I knew straight away that something bad had happened.

"I ran out but couldn’t get near the train because there was boiling steam everywhere."

Staff from the pub came out to help and one woman suffered superficial burns from the steam.

The landlord has seen many near misses at the level crossing and said that it is time a safety barrier was put up.

"It’s time to look at some better safety measures. When this railway was built all those years ago there was hardly any traffic but now we have a million visitors to Dungeness every year and there are far more cars on the road."

Mr Miaoulis added: "I am distraught. The railway and the Martins are part of Dungeness. The heart has been ripped out of the community."

The accident is being investigated by the Railway Inspectorate and the railway says all crossings meet legal requirements.

Director of the railway Robert Watson said: "Safety is always paramount to the railway and recently new signs were put up at all crossings. We will be looking at safety with the Railway Inspectorate."

Trains are running as normal between Hythe and New Romney and a book of condolence in honour of Mrs Martin will be placed at the New Romney station.