Services on the Tyne and Wear Metro will be amended over three weekends over the next month as part of a project to replace 1.6km of track between Gateshead Stadium and Felling. The first closure will be over the weekend of 13th and 14th April with further closures over the Easter and May Day Bank Holiday weekends.
This programme of track replacement is part of the £350 million Metro: all change modernisation project which recently reached the £300 million mark following the replacement of two bridges.
Huw Lewis, Customer Services Director at Nexus, said: “Track replacement is absolutely vital for us to secure Metro’s long term future and the next major piece of work will be in the Gateshead area over the coming weeks. Unfortunately this type of work can only be done by closing the line. We know that some customers will be inconvenienced by this and we apologise for it. We only close the line when absolutely necessary, and we always make closures as short as we possibly can. We also try to schedule the work for less busy periods. Frequent replacement bus services will be running in the affected areas and the message to customers is to plan ahead and make sure they allow themselves enough time to make their journeys.”
The works will take place as follows:
Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th April: No trains Monument to Hebburn/Brockley Whins
Friday 19th to Monday 22nd April (Easter weekend): No trains Gateshead Stadium to Hebburn/Brockley Whins
Saturday 4th to Monday 6th May (Bank Holiday weekend): No trains Monument to Hebburn/Brockley Whins
Replacement buses will run on affected sections during the closures.