A TRAIN driver has been hailed a hero after stopping his high-speed service to save a dog which had wandered on to a Hampshire railway track.

Martin Crane spotted hapless pooch Jazz on the lines and brought his train to a shuddering halt near Hinton Admiral station in the New Forest.

Rather than wait for the labrador poodle cross to move off the track, he managed to coax the animal safely in to one of the carriages.

Despite the delay, passengers onboard the 6.30am service from London Waterloo gave their kind hearted driver a round of applause.

Martin said: "A driver going in the opposite direction flashed his lights to alert me to a problem, then the signalman contacted me and explained everything so I slowed down and caught sight of the dog.

"I got him back into the train and passed him over to the guard to look after until the next stop. The passengers didn't seem too upset about the train being slightly delayed."

Jazz had strayed off the beaten track after he chased some deer during his morning walk.

But the pursuit nearly ended in disaster when he popped up on the line between New Milton and Hinton Admiral, which carries trains travelling at speeds of up to 100mph.

The Firth family, who have owned Jazz for just over a year, were contacted with news of his rescue by Carol Parkhurst at Hinton Admiral ticket office.

Sandra Firth said: "It was half term week so I was at home with our kids Daniel and Georgia. My husband called and said Jazz had run off and he had been looking for him for around 35 minutes.

"We were just about to leave the house to go and help with the search when the phone rang and it was Carol saying she had Jazz with her.

"When we got there he was sitting with his paws on the counter. It was wonderful to see him and we were so lucky that the train stopped."