Trains return to Whitley Bay on Monday 2 November, but Tynemouth to Wallsend stays shut until 5 November for bridge repairs. Bus 900 runs until Sunday.

No Metro trains will run through Whitley Bay for nine days at the end of October. The line between St James and Monkseaton closes in both directions from Saturday 24 October to Sunday 1 November, and trains return on the morning of Monday 2 November.

Updated 31 October: trains return to Whitley Bay on 2 November as planned, but no trains will run between Tynemouth and Wallsend until Thursday 5 November, while Nexus repairs a damaged bridge in North Shields. Replacement buses run between the two every 20 minutes (Nexus). Our story on the extension has which stations are affected.

Updated 21 October: we rechecked Travel North East today. The dates and the bus 900 timetable are unchanged. The Tyne Bridge is also closed to traffic from late on Friday 23 October until early on Monday 2 November, and several Go North East buses will stop at Gateshead Interchange instead of Newcastle city centre (Travel North East). Our roadworks page has the detail.

Nexus, which runs the Metro, announced the closure on 30 September. It is renewing track and overhead line on one of the busiest stretches of the network (Nexus).

Which stations are affected

The closed section is the coast side of the Yellow Line loop. Every station from St James round to Monkseaton is shut, including:

  • Whitley Bay
  • Cullercoats
  • Tynemouth
  • North Shields and Meadow Well
  • Percy Main, Howdon and Hadrian Road
  • Wallsend, Walkergate, Chillingham Road, Byker and Manors

Monkseaton itself still has trains, on the other side of the loop. A revised Yellow Line service runs from South Shields to Monkseaton through Gateshead, the city centre, South Gosforth and Shiremoor (revised timetable).

The replacement bus

Replacement bus 900 runs between St James and Monkseaton, calling at or near every closed station. In Whitley Bay it stops on Station Road, stop 05W11, by Station Square. In Cullercoats it uses John Street, and in Tynemouth Station Terrace (Nexus bus stop map).

The published timetable sets out how often it runs (bus 900 timetable):

Day Daytime Evening
Monday to Friday every 12 minutes every 15 minutes
Saturday every 12 minutes every 15 minutes
Sunday every 15 minutes every 15 minutes

The last bus leaves St James at 11.37pm and reaches Whitley Bay at 12.35am. The timetable allows just over an hour for that trip, so leave plenty of time.

What the work is

Nexus says it will renew key sections of track, including junctions in east Newcastle, and overhead line and switching equipment in North Tyneside. Between Walkergate and Wallsend the track and the track bed will be replaced, using 1,500 metres of new rail and new timber sleepers.

Work will run around the clock. People living beside the line may see rail vehicles and machinery along the route, and some of the overnight work may be noisy (Travel North East).

Paul Welford, Nexus’s major projects director, said: “There is no good time to close a line, and we always try to minimise disruption to as many customers as possible.” He said running the work in half term avoids the busiest commutes, and quieter roads should speed up the replacement buses.

It covers half term and the fireworks

The closure spans the whole of North Tyneside’s October half term. Schools break up on Friday 23 October and return on Monday 2 November, the same morning the trains come back (see our term dates page).

The last day of the closure is Sunday 1 November, when the borough’s free fireworks display is held on The Links in Whitley Bay. There will be no trains to Whitley Bay station that evening. Our fireworks page has the times.

What it means for you

  • Commuting into Newcastle? Either take bus 900 from Station Road, or get to Monkseaton or West Monkseaton, where trains still run into the city the other way round the loop.
  • Heading to the coast for half term? Visitors from Newcastle will need bus 900 or the revised service to Monkseaton, then a walk or bus to the seafront.
  • Fireworks on 1 November: plan on the bus or a walk from Monkseaton, and expect the buses to be busy after the display.
  • Driving to a station instead? Monkseaton has 22 free spaces off Norham Road. Our roadworks and travel page has the station car parks and this month’s road closures, including the Coast Road slip road at Norham Road from 26 October.
  • Live near the line? Nexus offers advance notice of noisy night work on its night works page and a free weekly email.

Our Metro times page has the normal service for when the line reopens.

Sources