Passengers travelling between Monument and Heworth on the North East metro will be having a happy new year after an update to the closed Gateshead flyover means the service has resumed at the end of the festive period.
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00:00It's new year, new me for the closed dangerous Gateshead flyover, as an industrial prop has
00:05been installed to support the damaged stretch of road.
00:07This is particularly good news for any Metro passengers travelling between Monument and
00:10Heworth, a route previously closed as a safety precaution because the line travels under
00:14the possibly condemned flyover.
00:16The prop and device is a temporary measure until work to encase the pillar in concrete
00:20begins early in the new year.
00:21Gateshead Council leader Martin Gannon thanked everyone involved in the repairs and advised
00:25that getting the Metros to run again, while ensuring people were safe, has been their
00:28top priority, adding that the longer term plans are to demolish the flyover completely
00:33and regenerate the area.
00:35North East Mayor Kim McGuinness advised that she'd support plans to demolish the flyover
00:39and redevelop the area, whilst she'd also be pushing the government to fund a whole
00:42new plan for roads around Gateshead town centre and feeding the Tyne Bridge.
00:46Cathy Massarella, the managing director of Nexus, said that their infrastructure and
00:50operations teams finished tunnel inspections to make sure the trains could run safely through
00:54them again and that, as of Thursday 2nd January, a normal timetable would resume.