It has been confirmed that Newsham station on The Northumberland Line will open on Monday, 17th March.
In the first month after the line opened, about 50,000 passenger journeys were made, with the figure now over 110,000.
The journey time from Newsham to Newcastle will be 21 minutes.
Stations at Bedlington, Blyth Bebside, and Northumberland Park are the final stations yet to be completed but are scheduled to open later this year.
Tickets for The Northumberland Line can be purchased online at https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/, with tickets for travel from Newsham going on sale from Monday, 10th March.
Peak-time return tickets between Newsham and Newcastle will cost £4.80.
Local residents can find out more about the opening of Newsham station at a drop-in event being held at Blyth Town Football Club from 5 pm to 7.15 pm on Tuesday, 11th March.
Travellers from Newsham station will be able to use the Nexus integrated Pop card, which connects passengers on the Northumberland Line with the Metro system and provides fares of just £1 for everyone up to the age of 21.
Newsham will increase the number of stations in the Nexus smart travel network to 62.
Olivia Perkins, Managing Director from Morgan Sindall Infrastructure-Rail, said the opening of Newsham railway station was a proud achievement for its team and supply chain.
The company remains dedicated to delivering the remaining stations with minimal disruption to passengers and the local community in mind.
“Tens of thousands of people have already benefited from the historic reopening of the Northumberland Line, and I’m pleased many more will do so when Newsham station opens next month. “The line is having a transformational impact on a region that was unserved by the railway for 60 years, stimulating economic growth in line with the Government’s Plan for Change, providing better travel options for local people and opening up new opportunities for businesses.”
Peter, Lord Hendy, Rail Minister
Responses
It’s excellent that this line has re-opened and that its stations are (slowly) being brought into us. But all new station designs appear to be very elaborate and I’m sure that this must contribute to the eye-watering costs of re-opening closed lines. These costs have militated against a lot of other closed lines being re-opened and surely there must be a case for at least simpler stations, along the lines of the “Halts” that the Victorians used.