Anyone planning to travel to or from Newcastle International Airport by Metro this month needs to check their journey — the line will be closed for nine days as part of a major renewal project.
Services between South Gosforth and the Airport will be suspended in both directions from Saturday 15 August until Sunday 23 August, with normal Metro schedules resuming from the morning of Monday 24 August. Operator Nexus has confirmed a replacement bus service will run throughout the closure, calling at or close to all affected stations, including the Airport itself. The company has urged passengers to plan ahead and allow extra time for their journeys while work is underway.
The closure will allow crews to safely remove the large metal canopy covering the bus station roadway and Metro lines at Regent Centre, as part of a wider station refurbishment. At the same time, track renewal and station upgrades will take place at Callerton Parkway, Bank Foot, Kingston Park, Fawdon and Wansbeck Road. Paul Welford, Major Projects Director at Nexus, said the works represent a major investment in the Airport line, and that the canopy at Regent Centre needs to come down as part of the wider refurbishment — something that can only be done safely with the line closed. He added that the timing has been chosen deliberately to fall within the school summer holidays, when commuter numbers are lower and roads are quieter, which should help replacement buses run to time.
For airport transfer operators and drivers picking up or dropping off passengers around the Metro’s Airport line stations during the closure, it’s worth building in extra time on jobs that would normally rely on Metro connections — replacement bus services, however frequent, rarely match rail-replacement speeds exactly, and passengers arriving off flights may be counting on a Metro connection that simply isn’t running.
For airport transfers in Newcastle, DM Airport Transfers offers pickups and drop-offs across the region.
Thanks for visiting DM News! If you’ve got a question, a story tip, or anything you like to share, head over to DriverMatty.com — I love to hear from you. While you’re there, don’t forget to check out my other websites and social media channels.
Sources:
