Chairman of Northumberland County Council John Beynon; Regional Director of Northern Jason Wade; and Council Leader Glen Sanderson (right) at the newly opened Newsham Station
Chairman of Northumberland County Council John Beynon; Regional Director of Northern Jason Wade; and Council Leader Glen Sanderson (right) at the newly opened Newsham Station
Newcastle United's Carabao Cup win isn't the only thing to prompt celebrations on Monday as the third new station on the Northumberland Line opened.
A mix of local residents, commuters and rail enthusiasts were among those to travel on the first service from Newsham to Newcastle, which departed at 6.12am. The line connects the village in Blyth to Newcastle Central Station in 21 minutes, with a peak-time return journey costing £4.80.
Coun Glen Sanderson, leader of Northumberland County Council, said it was another great day for the county. He said: "A huge amount of work has gone into getting this station open as quickly and safely as possible and I know teams have been literally working around the clock to get things ready for today.
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"It's a real renaissance moment - It's 70 years since Newcastle United won a major domestic trophy. Back then you could have travelled by train to Newcastle from here and now Newcastle are winning once again and you can now get to the city on a train in just over 20 minutes.
"So I feel incredibly proud to see another station opening on this very ambitious project which is already paying dividends for our residents, tourists and businesses. The opening of Newsham Station will no doubt bring a further boost to passenger numbers and we look forward to even greater passenger figures as more stations open."
The opening of Newsham, the largest new station on the line, follows the opening of Ashington and Seaton Delaval Stations as the line was officially opened by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander on Thursday, December 12. Three days later, the first passenger train in 60 years rolled into Ashington, greeted by cheering crowds - some of whom had waited since before sunrise.
The Northumberland Line has not been without its issues - the project ballooned from £130 million to £298.5 million with various issues blamed for the delay, including the "wettest winter for 200 years", the discovery of an unexploded bomb, and the discovery of unmapped mineworks.
However, Northern Rail, which runs the services, says that passengers have made more than 135,000 journeys on the line so far - 50,000 of those in the first month, and 3,500 on its first day alone. They have also made sure that their staff know how to correctly pronounce Newsham when making announcements and speaking to customers!
The remaining three stations at Bedlington, Blyth Bebside and Northumberland Park remain under construction, with Bebside next in line to open this summer.
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