West Monkseaton Metro station

West Monkseaton is a station on the Tyne and Wear Metro, serving Monkseaton and Wellfield in North Tyneside. The station joined the network in August 1980, following the opening of the line between Haymarket and Tynemouth – the first stage of the network to open.

West Monkseaton
Tyne and Wear Metro
Location
PlaceMonkseaton
Local authorityNorth Tyneside
Coordinates55.0403°N 1.4766°W / 55.0403; -1.4766
Fare zone information
Metro zoneC
Network One3
Original zone19
Station codeWMN
Operations
Platforms2
Usage
Metro Usage0.38[1] million
History
Original companyLondon and North Eastern Railway
Opened 20 March 1933
Closed for conversion10 September 1979
Metro since11 August 1980
List of stations

The station originally opened in March 1933, as part of the London and North Eastern Railway, with the station building constructed in Art Deco style.

The station was used by 384,731 passengers in 2017–18, making it the eighth-most-used station in North Tyneside.

History

Monkseaton had been served by a station since 1864.[2] However, the development of new housing in the area adjoining the line led the London and North Eastern Railway to construct an additional station, about 3⁄4 mile (1.2 km) west along the line from the station at Monkseaton. West Monkseaton opened in March 1933, with the platforms taking just a month to build after plans were approved.

The reinforced concrete Art Deco station building is attributed to the London and North Eastern Railway architect, H. H. Powell.[3] Work on the station building, however, did not begin until 1934. Staircases and ramps led down from this building to two timber platforms, both of which featured waiting rooms. The westbound platform featured a concrete canopy, which was added by the London and North Eastern Railway, following the construction of the waiting rooms.[4]

Prior to the station's closure for conversion in the late 1970s, the station generally received a service every 20 minutes in both directions, on the Coast Circle route. The service from West Monkseaton to Newcastle via South Gosforth was removed in January 1978, in order to facilitate conversion work on the stations to the west. This meant that the station was briefly a terminus for trains from Newcastle via Tynemouth, with trains reversing using a crossover to the west of the station.

The station closed for conversion in September 1979, ahead of opening as part of the Tyne and Wear Metro network, re-opening in August 1980. Conversion work saw the loss of the wooden station buildings at platform level, as well as the replacement of the timber platforms with shorter concrete ones. The canopy on the westbound platform (trains towards St. James) was retained, while a smaller canopy in a similar style was added to the eastbound platform (trains towards South Shields).

The original street-level entrance building remains, and was refurbished in 1999, along with the original London and North Eastern Railway platform canopy. As part of this refurbishment, an art installation by Richard Talbot, Bridge, was commissioned. It features a number of coloured stained glass windows, and is located in the station's ticket hall, overlooking the track and platforms.[5]

West Monkseaton was recently refurbished, along with Cullercoats and Monkseaton, in 2018, as part of the Metro: All Change programme. The refurbishment involved the installation of new seating and lighting, resurfaced platforms, and improved security and accessibility. The station was also painted in to the new black and white corporate colour scheme.[6][7]

Facilities

Step-free access is available at all stations across the Tyne and Wear Metro network, with ramped access to both platforms. The station is equipped with ticket machines, waiting shelter, seating, next train information displays, timetable posters, and an emergency help point on both platforms. Ticket machines are able to accept payment with credit and debit card (including contactless payment), notes and coins.[8][9] The station is also fitted with smartcard validators, which feature at all stations across the network.[10][11]

There is no dedicated car parking available at the station. There is the provision for cycle parking, with 3 cycle lockers and 5 cycle pods available for use.[12]

Service and frequency

West Monkseaton is served by the  Yellow Line , which operates between South Shields and St. James with an end-to-end journey time of 83 minutes.

Services from platform 1 operate towards South Shields, with the first train departing at 05:44 (05:46 on Saturday and 06:38 on Sunday). Services from platform 2 operate towards St. James via Whitley Bay, with the first train departing at 05:20 (05:38 on Saturday and 06:23 on Sunday). Trains run frequently across the network, at intervals of up to every 12 minutes (Monday to Saturday daytime), and every 15 minutes (evening and Sunday), with the last trains departing at around midnight.

Additional trains run during morning and evening peak hours (Monday to Friday) between Pelaw and Monkseaton. This provides up to 10 trains per hour through the station at peak times.[12]

Journey times from West Monkseaton are:

See also

References
  1. "Tyne and Wear Metro usage figures 2017–2018". Retrieved 21 August 2019.
  2. "Disused Stations: Monkseaton (First site)". Disused Stations. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  3. Lawrence, David (2018). British Rail Architecture 1948–97. Crecy Publishing Ltd. p. 26. ISBN 978-0860936855.
  4. "Disused Stations: West Monkseaton". Disused Stations. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  5. "'Bridge' by Richard Talbot". Nexus. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  6. Seddon, Sean (22 February 2018). "Three Metro stations to get £700,000 refurbishment after years of wear and tear". ChronicleLive. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  7. "North Tyneside Metro stations are to undergo refurbishments". Nexus. 20 February 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  8. "Metro passengers feel the benefit of contactless payment". Nexus. 13 January 2014. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  9. "Revamp for Metro ticket machines". BBC News. 11 December 2011. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  10. "City Metro stations get new smart ticket machines and gates". Nexus. 22 October 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  11. "Pop card validators at Metro stations are put through their paces". Nexus. 21 March 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  12. "Timetables and stations: West Monkseaton". Nexus. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
Preceding station   Tyne and Wear Metro   Following station
towards St James
Yellow line
towards South Shields
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