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Tour of Tyne and Wear Metro

Join us for a tour of one of the most iconic methods of transport in Tyne and Wear.

We are delighted to announce that Nexus have kindly agreed to host a tour of the Metro control room, the traction maintenance depot and a city centre underground station.

Event information

The Tyne and Wear Metro, which is owned and operated by the Tyne & Wear Passenger Transport Executive (t/a Nexus) opened in stages between 1980 and 1984 with extensions to Newcastle Airport in 1991 and Sunderland in 2002.

A large part of the Metro network was a conversion from the local British Rail network with some new sections of underground track and stations built in central Newcastle and Gateshead, linked together by the QEII bridge that spans the River Tyne.

Although it is a locally owned railway, it is part of the national rail network. It has 60 stations which Nexus manages, with the exception of Sunderland station where Northern Rail are the facility owner. The network has approximately 78km of track on which 450 services operate each weekday.

Since 2010 Nexus has renewed or replaced track, overhead power lines, bridges and tunnels and has also introduced new technology by replacing key communications systems.

Throughout the decade, Nexus will have invested over £350 million, but this critical investment will continue throughout the next decade also, with Nexus currently finalising its application for new funding as part of the Government’s Spending Review 2019. This will be in addition to the £337 million that the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the autumn 2017 budget for a new fleet of Metrocars and new depot facilities.

The Metro employs over 800 staff and has a gross operating budget in excess of £100 million per annum.

The visit will include a tour of the control room, traction maintenance depot and a city centre underground station as well as a brief presentation on the history and future plans of the metro.

The tour will involve some walking and will include using steps. If anyone wishes to attend who is unable to walk a reasonable distance unaided or use steps please let us know as soon as possible, as it may be possible to attend the event given enough notice.

Numbers are strictly limited, and bookings therefore will be allocated on a first – come-first-served basis. Please therefore only book if you intend to come otherwise you could be taking a place that could have been taken by someone else.

Programme

Time	Activity
09:30	Meet at Central Station Metro Concourse and then leave to travel to South Gosforth for a tour of the control room. This will illustrate the movement of the trains, CCTV, social media updates and how the controllers react if an incident occurs.
10:45	Tour of the current Gosforth Depot which is over 100 years old. The current depot services all the existing fleet and is set to be demolished and replaced in the next few years.
11:30	Return to Central Station for a brief tour of a working station and how it links back into the control room.
11:45	Walk to Nexus house where tea and coffee will be provided, listen to a presentation detailing the history of the Metro system, the operational strategy and the future plans. Plus, your chance to ask burning questions.
12:30	Wrap up of event at Nexus House.

Important Information

Cost

Rate	Cost
Price	No Charge