Extra buses for football fans hit by flyover woe

A fleet of replacement buses is being laid on to help Newcastle United fans travel to a Boxing Day match.

Metro operator Nexus said supporters heading to St James' Park for the tie against Aston Villa should "allow extra time" due to a reduced train service caused by the closure of the Gateshead flyover.

Metro services are suspended between Monument and Heworth as a precaution because tunnels run beneath the unsafe flyover, Nexus said.

Extra buses will operate on Thursday between the two locations, with a bus leaving about every eight minutes.

The move comes a day after North East Mayor Kim McGuinness met with Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, Gateshead MP Mark Ferguson and Gateshead Council Leader Martin Gannon.

McGuinness said "immediate" action was being taken to repair the flyover to the point where the Metro can operate again, but did not detail what action or when it was likely to see trains running.

The BBC has approached Gateshead Council and the Department for Transport for more detail.

A spokesperson for the latter said: "We understand the difficult impact the closure of the flyover is having on local travel and, while Gateshead Council is responsible for the maintenance of the Gateshead flyover, we are ready to work with the council to support them on their next steps."

Meanwhile, Nexus said the Green Line was still running northbound from Monument to Newcastle Airport, as well as the Yellow Line via the North Tyneside coast between St James and Monument.

"As things stand, Metro services are also still running from Heworth down to South Shields and to South Hylton on the Sunderland line with a 24 minute service in place," it added.

Nexus previously described the disruption caused by the closure of the flyover as "one of the biggest operational challenges" faced in the history of the Tyne and Wear Metro.

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