With positive year-on-year comparisons in September and October, and the new fleet being brought into service, Metro's chief urges passengers to be positive about their metro travel this winter.
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00:00The Tyne & Wear Metro boss Cathy Massarella has stated that she's as confident as she
00:04can be that the system will run much better this winter than last, which was the worst
00:07metros have performed since the network opened in 1980, with just 61% of trains running on
00:12time. The trains have gone way beyond their 30-year lifespan, and Ms Massarella advised
00:16that Nexus are working with Stadler, the company in charge of maintaining the fleet, to ensure
00:19that the carriages, which have an increasingly long list of issues, will run as well as possible.
00:24Ms Massarella advised that she knows customers think they can't rely on metros anymore, but
00:28she pointed to the fact that in the month between September 15th and 12th October, 82%
00:33of trains arrived on time, compared to 70% in the same period last year as a positive
00:37indicator.
00:38In more positive news for customers, Metro has announced that it should only be a matter
00:41of weeks until some of the new £362 million fleet of trains are in service. The fleet
00:46was due to be on the tracks by summer 2023, but multiple setbacks have meant passengers
00:50have been left disappointed again and again.
00:52So, Ms Massarella is hopeful about this winter's service, although it's understandable if
00:57metro passengers don't share the same positivity.