AN event at London's Paddington Station to raise the profile of the scenic Looe Valley and Tamar Valley Lines has been shortlisted for a marketing award in the National Community Rail Awards.

'Wouldn't you rather be on this train?' was a one day marketing event held in March organised by the Plymouth University based Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership to promote the Looe and Tamar Valley Lines to the thousands of people passing through the station.

The Partnership worked with SECTA (South East Cornwall Tourism Association) and TAVATA (Tamar Valley Tourism Association), as members of both associations joined Partnership staff in London, talking to commuters and handing out free promotional season ticket holders. The event's centrepiece was a giant pasty, with a competition to guess the pasty's weight.

Richard Burningham from the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership said: 'We are thrilled that the event has been shortlisted in the best marketing event category. This was a really good partnership involving a lot of people from a number of different organisations.'

The Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership is a non-profit partnership between local authorities, including Cornwall Council, Devon County Council and Plymouth City Council, the rail industry and the University of Plymouth which works to promote rural branch lines in the two counties.

The National Community Rail Awards is an annual event which celebrates the work being done to promote and enhance Britain's rural and local railways around the country. The awards ceremony is being held in Carlisle on Friday September 25.