@northeastptug
A voluntary organisation in the North East of England campaigning for public transport for social and environmental good. We fight for more attractive, affordable, and accessible sustainable transport (including walking, cycling, bus, metro, and rail).
We fully support the move to bring North East buses back under public control, allowing residents to have a say in services and easier integration between buses, Metro, and local trains. We hope the plan is approved and keeps moving forward.
www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-e...
The coach station was downgraded to a "coach stop" several years ago by National Express, removing passenger facilities in the process. Flixbus use John Dobson Street because they are allowed to. We've been pushing for the council to take action and require their use of the station instead.
Bus movements through Newcastle city centre are extremely unreliable. This is what happens when you lose control of your road space. We'll continue to push for a full review of transport in the city centre, and will chase up the coach station situation again, Mike.
Sunday will see the opening of Northumberland Park station on the Northumberland Line, and also simple connections between Northern trains and the Tyne and Wear Metro. The Pop card will allow passengers to switch between the two, something we hope will come soon to Heworth and Sunderland.
mockups of the utterly generic and bland Rail Alphabet 2 version of "Ashington" sat above the correct and good Calvert branding for Nexus of the same running in board
A reminder that the entire Northumberland line is branded wrongly anyway...
It is irrelevant that the line is operated by Northern (who?), it is a suburban railway serving the Tyneside conurbation and should be integrated accordingly.
a tweet reply from Northumberland County Council reading: "The platform numbering won't be changing at Northumberland Park as it's two separate systems and there's a similar situation with the rail and Metro interchange at Heworth where both systems have platforms 1 & 2 on each station"
How long before both Northumberland Park and Heworth stations have their platform numbering corrected to create a single coherent interchange at each?
If we can get this tweet viral I'd say we can get it done in a month.
🎤We talked to @northeastbylines.co.uk about how better integration, modernising our local rail network and being able to safely walk/cycle to bus/Metro/rail stops could transform travel for North Easterners, and how we need strong visionary politicians to deliver.
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/n...
Can anyone predict what will happen in the North East?
The Mayor is already burning through Bus Service Improvement money on subsidising fares and routes, while Councils slow walk any actual infrastructure changes to give buses genuine priority.
Cont.
The @my-metro.bsky.social fare cap helps to simplify tickets for passengers, even if some fares may rise as a result. Ultimately, we need integrated tickets, allowing people to move seamlessly and affordably between Metro, bus, and rail.
www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-e...
Very exciting news for public transport users in the region, with the Pop card finally starting to reach its full potential. We've long called for integration of tickets for public transport, where users can switch easily between modes with simple tickets.
www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-e...
More fare increases for passengers in the region, now from Arriva buses. Those travelling short distances under the £2.50 cap are the ones losing out, alongside daily users without a monthly season ticket. Public control of buses will give greater clarity for users.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Passengers on the Northumberland Line can use the Pop card to travel on trains, but only as far as Newcastle central station. If those trains then go on to the Metrocentre (still within Tyne and Wear), passengers then need to buy a separate ticket. Improvement needed.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
The Government has committed to restoring the whole, former Leamside rail line
This is where the new North East Spatial Development Strategy will be vital. Planning for that housing and employment land has to be done around Leamside and other transport investment. The NPPF makes that much clearer now. Something to be very watchful of in any future plans.
The Leamside line will be far more important for the North East than faster trains to Manchester or Liverpool. Hopefully that funding will be secured to provide vital additional capacity and connectivity for local rail services and freight trains.
After years of one year funding settlements from the Treasury, it seems like the continuing rises in electricity and employment costs, combined with the apparent blind spot the treasury has when it comes to the North East are really putting Public Transport here under extreme pressure.
Good news for people and businesses in the North East - we need better public transport to tackle our region's social, economic, and environmental issues. But local rail services, not inter-city connections, are most vital. Congrats @kimmcguinness.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Parking on the pavement in London has been illegal for 52 years and in the rest of the UK it's just a fact of life. Central government just opted against a blanket national ban. Anyway here's an excellent advert from when it was banned in London: www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8Yg...
“These new powers do not go far enough to protect pedestrians. It’s disappointing not to see a nationwide prohibition.”
Our @charitycat.bsky.social responds to the news that local authorities will receive legal powers to restrict pavement parking. https://www.livingstreets.org.uk/pavement-parking
The West End of Newcastle is a poor relation when it comes to public transport provision. Given the difficulty of extending the Metro westwards, we'd like to see the option of trams explored but at the least Bus Rapid Transit with dedicated bus priority lanes. www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-e...
Nexus have stated that this "temporary closure is a precautionary step to keep everyone safe". Obviously safety of passengers is paramount, but why will the repairs take weeks to resolve @kimmcguinness.bsky.social ? Much better communication is needed from @my-metro.bsky.social .
Shut until mid-January?! Jesmond is a busy station used by students at nearby schools and universities. The station will not be open when they return to studies. Why will the repair take so long @my-metro.bsky.social ? Asking people to walk from nearby stations is simply not good enough.
Peter Sagar writes about the proposal to extend the Northumberland Line to Newbiggin. As we comment in the article, there are other improvements required to help more passengers to use the line, including longer trains and the completion of stations at Northumberland Park and Bedlington.
It's really difficult to understand why the opportunity has been missed to improve the environment here for the thousands of workers who will be accessing the new offices by public transport every day. Surely there was Section 106 money for improving provision for buses, cycling and walking?
We are disappointed that public transport users in Tyne and Wear are losing their day ticket whilst those in Northumberland and Durham are keeping theirs. We desperately need simpler, more affordable fares. Or even better, tap-on tap-off with the Pop card...
www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-e...
We're extremely disappointed that Nexus will not provide toilets at its major transport interchanges. For many, easy access to toilets on their journey is essential. It's simply not good enough to say "just go to Tesco or the Civic Centre if you need the toilet".
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Great that the fare cap is extended, but bad news for public transport users too: the £6.80 Tyne and Wear day ticket will be discontinued so multimodal passengers will have to buy the region-wide £7.50 day ticket instead. Durham and Northumberland versions remain. Why?
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Image of Gateshead Metro interchange, Alan Curtis, CC Licence
We are disappointed that Nexus have no plans to reopen the public toilets at Gateshead Interchange. We've written to @markfergusonmp.bsky.social to highlight the issues this causes to passengers, especially older people and those with disabilites and medical conditions. neptug.org.uk/gatesheadtoi...
We’re calling for an end to the fuel duty freeze and 5p fuel duty cut in next week’s Budget. We also want to see the Chancellor out a clear process and timetable for introducing a per-mile charge on EVs.
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Axing the cycle-to-work scheme might seem like low-hanging fruit for a cash-strapped Treasury, but it would be a big mistake. Particularly with expensive kid-carrying cargo e-bikes, it's one of the most effective modal shift levers out there.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...