Sunderland metro services halted for 5 days over half-term line closure for major works

Metro services in Sunderland will be suspended for five days to allow essential maintenance and upgrades during the half-term break.

Sunderland station

Travellers in Sunderland will experience a complete suspension of Metro services for five days as line maintenance work is scheduled, officials have confirmed.

Nexus, the organisation responsible for operating the Metro, announced the need to refurbish the Pelaw junction, a critical part of the system that handles 400 trains daily.

For the duration of the closure, from October 28 to November 1, replacement bus services will operate between Gateshead Stadium, South Hylton, and South Shields. As a result, Metro routes through Sunderland, including connections to South Hylton and South Tyneside, will be temporarily unavailable.

Heworth staion

Nexus’ infrastructure director, Stuart Clarke said: “This is a significant modernisation project and part of our multi-million pound asset renewal programme, which involves the complete replacement of one the busiest Metro track junctions on the system at Pelaw.

“We’re sorry for the inconvenience this may cause to our customers and we urge them to plan ahead and allow extra time to travel when these lines are closed.

“There is no good time to close such large sections of line, but we need a five-day window to get it done safely, ensuring a vital set of points located at Pelaw junction are renewed.

“We’ve planned the works into the half term break and are taking the opportunity to deliver a range of other Metro modernisation tasks to ensure future closures in this area won’t be needed as frequently.

“We will ensure customers are provided with frequent replacement buses in the affected areas so that they can still travel around.

“While the buses won’t be quite as quick as Metro services, they will get everyone where they need to be during the closure.”

The replacement buses will begin services from Gateshead Interchange. The 901 will run down the full Metro route to South Hylton calling at or near all stations. The 900 will run down to South Shields calling at or near every station.

Two express replacement bus services will also be running stopping at selected stations on both routes during peak times only.

The X901 will run Park Lane - Sunderland - St Peter’s - Stadium of Light - Seaburn - Heworth – Felling - Gateshead Stadium - Gateshead Interchange.

The X900 will run South Shields - Jarrow – Heworth - Felling - Gateshead Stadium - Gateshead Interchange.

Nexus said it has invested £446million in infrastructure renewal since 2010, as well as commissioning a £362million new train fleet for a system used by 31 million customers a year ensuring the longevity of Metro for many years to come.