MetroCentre railway station
Railway station in Tyne and Wear, England
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
MetroCentre is a railway station on the Tyne Valley Line, which runs between Newcastle and Carlisle via Hexham. The station, situated 3 miles 33 chains (3.41 mi; 5.49 km) west of Newcastle, between Dunston and Blaydon,[2] serving the MetroCentre shopping centre, Gateshead in Tyne and Wear, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.
MetroCentre  | |||||
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| General information | |||||
| Location | Metrocentre, Gateshead England | ||||
| Coordinates | 54°57′32″N 1°39′54″W | ||||
| Grid reference | NZ215627 | ||||
| Owned by | Network Rail | ||||
| Managed by | Northern Trains | ||||
| Transit authority | Tyne and Wear PTE | ||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | MCE[1] | ||||
| History | |||||
| Original company | British Rail (Eastern Region) | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 3 August 1987 | Opened as Gateshead MetroCentre | ||||
| 17 May 1993 | Renamed MetroCentre | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2020/21 |  61,036 | ||||
| 2021/22 |  0.287 million | ||||
| 2022/23 | 0.321 million | ||||
| 2023/24 | 0.519 million | ||||
| 2024/25 | 0.632 million | ||||
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History
The station was opened on 3 August 1987 by British Rail, and was initially named Gateshead MetroCentre.[3] The station's name was shortened to MetroCentre on 17 May 1993.[4]
The station is situated on a section of line built by the North Eastern Railway, which was constructed in sections between 1893 and 1909.[5] It linked the lines over the newly commissioned King Edward VII Bridge with the original Newcastle and Carlisle Railway freight route to Redheugh and Dunston Coal Staiths, dating back to 1837.[6]
Between January and February 2020, the platforms at the station were extended ahead of the introduction of upgraded rolling stock, as part of the Great North Rail project.[7][8]
Facilities
The station has two platforms, both of which have seating, a waiting shelter, next train audio and visual displays and an emergency help point. There is a footbridge linking the station with the Metrocentre, which provides step-free access to both platforms.[9]
MetroCentre has recently joined the Northern Trains penalty fare network, as new ticket machines were installed at the station in December 2020.[10]
Passenger volume
| 2002–03 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 | 2009–10 | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | 2012–13 | 2013–14 | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2017–18 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 | 2022–23 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entries and exits | 343,026 | 375,943 | 375,509 | 373,071 | 384,318 | 380,572 | 373,436 | 365,680 | 356,764 | 374,860 | 374,468 | 363,108 | 354,240 | 350,376 | 335,076 | 301,738 | 298,940 | 61,036 | 287,294 | 320,764 |
The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
Northern Trains Tyne Valley Line | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Newcastle – Carlisle via Hexham | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All services are operated by Northern Trains.
Mondays to Saturdays, there are generally three trains per hour between Newcastle and Hexham, two of which continue to Carlisle. Some of the Newcastle services extend to Morpeth or Middlesbrough via Hartlepool. On Sundays, there are three trains per hour between Newcastle and MetroCentre, with one of the westbound services continuing to Carlisle and one of the Newcastle services continuing to Ashington.[12]
| Preceding station |  National Rail |
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dunston towards Newcastle |
Northern Trains Tyne Valley Line |
Blaydon towards Carlisle | ||
