Article updated 15th December with photos of the re-opened line.
Tyne and Wear Metro services are once again travelling between Pelaw and South Shields after the line reopened following a 13 week closure. Trains resumed from the start of service on Wednesday 14th December – around nine days later than originally planned with slight delays in the completion of work, commissioning and driver familiarisation.
The closure has enabled a 4.6km stretch of the Tyne and Wear Metro to be dualled which would allow for more frequent services to run on this section of the network. Its part of the Metro Flow project – which has been part funded by the government’s Transforming Cities Fund – which has also been introduced to improve resilience on the network at times of disruption.
Cathy Massarella, Major Projects Director at Nexus, commented: “I am pleased to say that the Metro line between Pelaw and South Shields is now back up and running following the completion of the £104m Metro Flow works. I want to thank our customers for their patience during the closure, which we had to extend for ten days while we completed overhead line works and signal testing. We got the line handed back to us from our contractor at the weekend and we then needed two days for drivers to be familiarised with the new track and signalling layouts. Metro Flow has involved converting a freight line for Metro trains, which will ultimately help us to improve reliability across the system.”
During the 13 week closure – the longest and biggest single project undertaken on the original Metro network since it opened – three sections of line have been dualled. These are Pelaw to Hebburn (800 metres), Hebburn to Jarrow (1.4km) and Jarrow to Bede (600 metres).
- Meanwhile a temporary closure between South Gosforth and Four Lane Ends has been announced from 1800 on Thursday 15th December until the end of service to allow for repairs to be undertaken on a broken rail. The damage to the rail was discovered early on Wednesday 14th December and whilst it remains safe to operate trains at a reduced speed (a restriction of 15kph is in place between Longbenton and Four Lane Ends) repairs are needed as soon as possible. The broken rail is on the line that links the depot to the main line. Replacement buses will be in operation and Metro tickets will also be accepted on local bus routes.
This is the view at the foot of the viaduct over the Network Rail line at Pelaw with the track dualled and the freight line from the Network Rail line pictured on the left. South Shields bound Metros now use what was the freight line. Oil traffic to the Jarrow Oil Terminal will work through the platforms at Hebburn and Jarrow. Much of the disused freight line has not been lifted yet.
The junction past Jarrow where the oil traffic turn off to the left is pictured in this shot. (Both Photographs by Trevor Hall, 14th December 2022)