Work starts on Metro project

DESIGNS for new railway stations, bridges, and other critical infrastructure needed to finally bring the Tyne and Wear Metro to Washington are being drawn up - in the hope of winning Government support for the £900 million vision.

- DANIEL HOLLAND

North East mayor Kim McGuinness has pledged to deliver what would be the first extension of the Metro system for more than 20 years by opening a new route to Washington, one of the largest towns in the country without rail services.

Engineering consultants Arup have now been appointed to carry out a feasibility study for the project and specialist design work, Metro operator Nexus announced on Thursday. The move comes almost a year after the mayor pledged an £8 million cash injection to kickstart the scheme.

It is hoped that the designs will help local leaders when lobbying the Government for the huge amount of public funding that would be needed to actually build the extension. The proposed Washington Metro Loop would use the southern section of the mothballed Leamside railway line to form a link between the existing stations at Pelaw and South Hylton.