‘We’re ready’: Northern releases footage of full Northumberland Line route ahead of opening this weekend
Passengers will be able to travel by train along the Northumberland Line this weekend – for the first time in 60 years.
The line will open on Sunday, 15 December thanks to an ambitious £298.5m project involving the Department for Transport, Network Rail, Northumberland County Council and Northern.
Services will call at Newcastle, Manors, Seaton Delaval and Ashington, with a journey along the entire route taking around 35 minutes and a single ticket costing no more than £3.
Ahead of the opening, customers can take a tour of the 18-mile route by watching time-lapse footage recently recorded from the cab of a Northern train.
Paul Henry, programme manager for the Northumberland Line, said: “After years of hard work and preparation, we’re ready to run passenger services on the Northumberland Line and excited for the opening on Sunday.
“The new line will be a game changer for the local area, providing thousands of people who are fed up of sitting in traffic with a fast and affordable alternative.”
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander and North East Mayor Kim McGuinness were part of the group who travelled on board one of the final test services yesterday, before taking a tour of Ashington station.
They were told Northern is prepared to operate services for passengers, after 53 drivers and more than 75 conductors completed their training.
The staff have been doing test runs since August, to ensure they have an in-depth knowledge of the new route.
It comes after the track, which has only been used by freight trains in recent years, was upgraded and a state-of-the-art signalling system was installed by Network Rail.
Northern will run two daytime services an hour from Monday to Saturday and one train per hour in the evenings and on Sundays.
Passengers will travel on Class 158 trains, which have space for bicycles and wheelchairs, accessible toilets, free on-board Wi-Fi and charging points.
The maximum peak-time single fare – for the trip from Newcastle to Ashington – is £3 and a return trip costs £6. An off-peak single for the same journey is £2.60 and a return is £5.20.
Tickets are now available on the Northern website and app, from ticket vending machines and over the counter at ticket offices.
Northern has also worked with Nexus, the public body which runs Tyne and Wear Metro, and Northumberland County Council to provide integrated fares for multi-modal journeys.
Customers will be able to seamlessly switch between Metro and Northern services by using the North East’s Pop ‘Pay As You Go’ system to purchase smart fares.
Jacqueline Starr, chief executive of Rail Delivery Group, said: "It’s great to see the railway network expanding and connecting more people in the North East.
“Ticketing on the Northumberland Line will work seamlessly with the Tyne and Wear Metro, simplifying travel and offering greater convenience for our customers.
"We’re proud that this will be the first place in the North of England to introduce Pay As You Go ticketing on National Rail services.”
New stations in Newsham, Bedlington, Blyth Bebside and Northumberland Park remain under construction and they are due to open in 2025.
Northern is the second largest train operator in the UK, with 2,500 services a day to more than 500 stations across the North of England.