Metro boss claims trains are back on track after teething problems

The woman in charge of the Tyne and Wear Metro says the system's new train fleet has been a “real positive”, despite frustration with teething problems.

- by Gazette Reporter

Nexus managing director Cathy Massarella on the first new Metro train service.

It is almost a year since the first of the Metro's new Stadler carriages entered service, after a lengthy wait and multiple delays which hit the £362million project.

The arrival of the Swiss-built trains has long been hailed as the start of a brighter future for the Metro, as they replace the struggling fleet that has been running since the system’s launch in 1980 and has become increasingly unreliable.

Their first 11 months in action have not been without problemsmost notably an incident in which a train door opened on the wrong side, causing the new fleet to be pulled from service in April, and an unresolved fault with their air conditioning system that has caused leaks during hot weather.