Park and Ride sites across the Tyne and Wear Metro are set to enjoy a boost with new cashless parking facilities, improved lighting and enhanced CCTV. £3.2 million has been set-a-side by the North East Joint Transport Committee through the North East’s Transforming Cities Fund programme with the aim of encouraging greater use of the Park and Ride sites.
Sites due to benefit will include Bank Foot, Callerton, Regent Centre, Northumberland Park, Four Lane Ends and the Stadium of Light.
Cllr Martin Gannon, Chair of the North East Joint Transport Committee, said: “This investment is a major upgrade to six park and ride sites making them easier to use and more attractive options for local people travelling for work, leisure or to reach education. We are committed to helping people make sustainable changes to their journey habits and using Park & Ride for part of your journey is a great way to cut down on mileage, carbon emissions and of course fuel costs. Thanks to the Transforming Cities Fund, passengers using Metro Park & Ride can enjoy quicker and easier payment options and will benefit from improved security with CCTV and better lighting.”
Contactless payment will replace coin only ticket machines at the sites, with the option of pay-by-phone having been introduced by Nexus last year. There will also be energy efficiency lighting and digital CCTV alongside real-time updates on car park occupancy to Nexus apps and websites.