Shopping trolley thrown at Metro train 'could have caused derailment'

Vandals who threw a shopping trolley at a moving Metro train put "lives at risk" and could have caused a derailment, operator Nexus has said.

The cart was hurled from a footbridge at Monkseaton station in North Tyneside on Saturday night and led to services being suspended.

The Metro network has stepped up its security following a spate of anti-social behaviour in recent weeks.

Northumbria Police is investigating and has appealed for information.

It comes after security was increased over the bank holiday weekend following previous incidents involving youths over the Easter school holidays.

On April 11 a security guard was attacked and a carriage window smashed in disorder at Tynemouth station, involving groups of up to 30 teenagers.

Martin Kearney, chief operating officer at Nexus, said the trolley landed on the roof of a passing train after it was thrown from the bridge.

"It was a dangerous act and lives were undoubtedly put at risk as the trolley could have gone through a window or caused a derailment.

"The incident was more evidence of a problem with anti-social behaviour that goes wider than just Metro. It is affecting communities, and some of that offending is in areas where we run our services."

He added that Metro was "fundamentally a safe transport system" and £1.5m is expected to be spent on a dedicated security team, with CCTV also improved.

Supt Sam Rennison called the behaviour "totally unacceptable and extremely dangerous" and said inquiries were under way to identify those responsible.

In November, families of youths who caused trouble on the Metro system were warned they faced losing their council homes through eviction.

Follow BBC North East & Cumbria on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].