Calls for mainline trains to stop at Seaburn until new Metro fleet enters service

There are calls for mainline trains to stop at Seaburn Metro station after the introduction of new trams on the network was delayed again.

It was originally hoped that the 46 new trains would be gradually introduced between last summer and the beginning of next year.

But now problems have emerged which mean the Swiss-built carriages will need more testing.

Nexus bosses are now hoping to have the first of the new trains in use by the end of 2024.

Campaigners are calling on regional transport bosses and Northern Trains to reach an agreement to allow some mainline trains to stop at Seaburn Metro station until the new Metro trams enter service.

Miguel Smith, who describes himself as a Lib Dem spokesperson for Fulwell and Seaburn, said residents were tired of being let down by the service.

"It is an absolute kick in the teeth for passengers to be told just days after another ticket price hike that the desperately needed new Metro units won’t be entering service until the end of the year," he said.

"We shouldn’t have to put up with another year of the Metro barely operating to a timetable. People just cannot rely that the service will get them where they need to be on time.

"That’s why I am urging the Government, regional transport bosses and the publicly-owned Northern Rail to stop making excuses and find a way for some services on the Middlesbrough to Newcastle line to start stopping at Seaburn Metro station.

"Northern have recently started running more frequent services on this route so it can’t be beyond the realms of possibility for a few of those trains to stop at Seaburn until the end of the year so local people can have another option to get to and from Sunderland and Newcastle instead of constantly being failed by the Metro.”

Metro’s existing trains have been in use since the system opened in 1980 and are now well beyond their planned 30-year lifespan, making it increasingly difficult to source spare parts for repairs.

Customers have recently had to endure the worst period of under-performance in the network’s history.

A four-week period during November and December saw a record low of just 61% of trains arriving on time, though punctuality has since improved.