The return of Tyne and Wear Metro services between Pelaw and South Shields has been delayed by a further two days with confirmation that the first trains won’t now run until Wednesday 14th December. Services last ran between the two stations in September to allow for Metro Flow works to take place; originally due to be completed by Monday 5th December extra time has been needed to ensure all work is completed and tested satisfactorily.
Cathy Massarella, Nexus Major Projects Director, explained more about the delay: “We will have Metro services back up and running between Pelaw and South Shields on Wednesday morning, 14th December. The bulk of the works on the new tracks and signals are finished along the 4.6km stretch, but we need to extend for the final few pieces of work on the overhead power lines, which we need to get done right so that we can run the trains. We understand customers are frustrated that this major £104m renewal programme has been extended again and we’re sorry for the inconvenience and disruption this causes.”
During the closure three sections of track between Pelaw and Bede have been dualled to allow extra services to run along the length of the line. This has seen a heavy rail freight line upgraded and part of the delay has been down to making sure the infrastructure allows both the Metro and the freight lines to run alongside each other.
The Metro Flow project has cost £104 million which included £95 million from the government’s Transforming Cities Fund. Additional trains from Stadler are also being funded with this cash with extra services able to be operated in the future as well as helping to increase resilience to delays.