Persistent vandalism is posing a safety risk to a south Oxfordshire heritage railway.

Fencing along the track of Cholsey and Wallingford Railway has been repeatedly broken down to create a short cut across the village's Jubilee Field. Managers of the railway, Cholsey and Wallingford Railway Preservation Society (CWRPS), could be asked to pay up to £36,000 for a sturdier fence.

The land on which the railway operates is owned by Wallingford Town Council, but it is the responsibility of CWRPS to maintain fences.

CWRPS chairman Jo Clyde believes dog-walkers may have caused the damage.

She said: "It's a safety issue. We recently saw people walking their dogs right in front of our works train."

She appealed to walkers to cross the railway safely via the nearby Bull-hole Bridge, and warned that trespassing on the line was a criminal offence carrying a maximum £1,000 fine.