Tyne and Wear Metro upgrade will not be hit by cash woes, chiefs say

A £100m upgrade to boost the frequency of Tyne and Wear Metro trains will not be derailed by the network's money problems, bosses have said.

Work is due to start next year on a project that will allow services to run every 10 minutes outside central Newcastle and Gateshead.

However, low passenger numbers during the coronavirus pandemic have left the system facing financial shortfalls.

Operator Nexus said it was "committed" to delivering the scheme.

Known as Metro Flow, it will involve upgrading three single-track sections of the line between Pelaw and Bede in South Tyneside into dual-track routes.

Nexus has received several bailouts from the government over the past 18 months and is predicted to suffer deficits of about £40m due to the pandemic, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Transport chiefs said they would "continue to work through" their "budget challenge" and press ahead with the plan.

"We are committed to delivering the Metro Flow project, for which we have successfully attracted over £100m of government funding, which will boost the capacity for an extra 24,000 customer journeys every day," Nexus said in a statement.

"The focus of Metro's recovery must be about stimulating demand. Our investment in Metro Flow, and in the new train fleet, is to improve train availability, punctuality, and reliability as well as increasing service frequency and reducing disruption."

Work to dual the track, which is expected to start next September, will require a 12-week shutdown of Metro services in South Tyneside.

The three sections which need to be upgraded, via the electrification of an existing freight line, are the only remaining parts of the Metro where trains must share the same line in both directions - which cause delays as drivers wait for the green light to proceed.

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