Farewell and thank you to the old trains

Travellers take one last trip in the box-like carriages

- By Owen Younger

THROUGHOUT this week, people have had the opportunity to take a ride on one of the original Tyne and Wear Metro trains for the final time, thanks to special farewell services put on by Nexus.

When Friday rolled around, I felt something close to an obligation to do this for myself, so I headed over to South Gosforth, with the added irony of travelling from Monument on one of the new trains.

When I arrived, there was already a large crowd starting to form in the still hot, but not quite as sweltering as previous days, conditions.

Several of the new trains came by while we awaited the old one, signalling a ‘changing of the guard’ of sorts, and when the original service did arrive, there was a collective reach for mobile phones to take the perfect picture.

One of the first things I noticed was just how busy the train was, making my journey, although filled with nostalgia, a warmer experience.