I had a small but pretty significant role in preventing any of the Metro lines from suffering from subsidence

The Washington 86-year-old had a job which was unlike any other. He ensured that miles of its tracks were kept safe and secure from used mine workings.

A significant role in the early days of the Metro

He was part of a team of ex-miners recruited by the Tyne and Wear PTE, now Nexus, to survey swathes of Metro’s alignments.

They checked for mine shafts and bell pits and John remembered: “I had a small but pretty significant role in preventing any of the Metro lines from suffering from subsidence.”

John’s unique role began in the 1980s when he ‘got a job working for a contractor who had been brought in by the Metro operator to check for mine workings underneath the tracks, which at that point hadn’t been there for all that long.”

Work at Manors and Whitley Bay

He did work at Manors and Whitley Bay and remembered: “We were told to drill boreholes to see if there was any coal under the lines, or if any coal had been removed.

“It was vital to ensure that there weren’t any mine shafts below the Metro lines. If there were any then that would have left the tracks at risk of collapse.

The team then filled in the mine workings with gravel or liquid cement.

Stuart Clarke, Infrastructure Director at Nexus, said: “It’s fascinating to hear from former miners who played such a key role in the development of the Metro system during the 1970s and 1980s.

‘Our region has such a rich mining heritage’

“It was vital work, given that our region has such a rich mining heritage.”

Mr Clarke said it was ‘work which has stood the test of time and undoubtedly contributed to the success of the Metro system that we have today.”

“We know that there were many miners who also worked on the Metro tunnelling project from 1974, when Metro’s city centre tunnels were dug.”

Dave Anderson is the former Blaydon MP and now a trustee of the ongoing project to restore the Grade II Listed Miners’ New Hall in Durham City, which is also known as the Redhills Project.

He said: “John Wood’s work for the Metro was hugely significant. It ensured that it ran properly and that there were no issues with any mine workings below the tracks.”