East Boldon Metro station

East Boldon is a station on the Tyne and Wear Metro, serving The Boldons in South Tyneside. The station joined the network in March 2002, following the opening of the 18 km (11 mi) extension from Pelaw to South Hylton.[2] The station originally opened in June 1839 as Cleadon Lane, under the Brandling Junction Railway, being renamed East Boldon in October 1898.[3] Services were operated by steam trains until 21/11/1955 when Diesel Multiple Units took over most services between Newcastle and Middlesbrough which continued until the Tyne and Wear Metro commenced electric train service in 2002. Although passenger service is operated by Tyne and Wear Metro, the track is owned and maintained by Network Rail with other operators using the route, including LNER, Northern, GB Railfreight and DRS Railfreight.

East Boldon
Tyne and Wear Metro station
LocationEast Boldon, South Tyneside
England
Coordinates54°56′47″N 1°25′13″W
Grid referenceNZ372614
Transit authorityTyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive
Platforms2
Tracks2
Construction
Parking58 spaces
Bicycle facilities
  • 9 cycle lockers
  • 5 cycle pods
Disabled accessStep-free access to platform level
Other information
Station codeEBL
Fare zoneB
History
Original companyBrandling Junction Railway
Pre-groupingNorth Eastern Railway
Post-grouping
Key dates
19 June 1839Opened as Cleadon Lane
1 October 1898Renamed East Boldon
31 March 2002Joined the Tyne and Wear Metro network
Passengers
2017/180.32 million[1]
Services
Preceding station Metro Following station
Seaburn
towards South Hylton
 Green Line Brockley Whins
towards Airport
Location

As well as Seaburn, Brockley Whins and Heworth, East Boldon was formerly served by rail services operating along the Durham Coast Line between Sunderland and Newcastle. Following the introduction of Tyne and Wear Metro services to Wearside in March 2002, Heworth is now the only remaining intermediate station served by rail services operating between Sunderland and Newcastle.

Along with other stations on the line between Fellgate and South Hylton, the station is fitted with vitreous enamel panels designed by artist, Morag Morrison. Each station uses a different arrangement of colours, with strong colours used in platform shelters and ticketing areas, and a more neutral palate for external elements.[4]

The station was used by 319,224 passengers in 2017–18, making it the sixth-most-used station on the Wearside extension.

Facilities

Step-free access is available at all stations across the Tyne and Wear Metro network, with ramped access to platforms at East Boldon. The station is also 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.[5][6] The station is also fitted with smartcard validators, which feature at all stations across the network.[7][8]

There is a free car park available, with 58 parking spaces, plus 4 accessible spaces, as well as a taxi rank. There is also the provision for cycle parking, with 9 cycle lockers and 5 cycle pods available for use.[9]

Service and frequency

East Boldon is served by the  Green Line , which operates between South Hylton and Airport, with an end-to-end journey time of 64 minutes. The station is also bypassed by Northern Trains services operating along the Durham Coast Line between Newcastle and Middlesbrough.

Services from platform 1 operate towards South Hylton, with the first train departing at 05:37 (05:42 on Saturday and 06:41 on Sunday).[note 1] Services from platform 2 operate towards Airport, with the first train departing at 05:59 (06:01 on Saturday and 07:24 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.[9]

Journey times from East Boldon are:

See also

References
  1. "Tyne & Wear Metro usage figures". 2017–2018. Retrieved 21 August 2019.
  2. Hope, Richard (1 July 2001). "Tyne & Wear Metro shares tracks to Sunderland". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  3. Butt (1995), page 63
  4. "'Station Colours' by Morag Morrison". Nexus. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  5. "Metro passengers feel the benefit of contactless payment". Nexus. 13 January 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  6. "Revamp for Metro ticket machines". BBC News. 11 December 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  7. "City Metro stations get new smart ticket machines and gates". Nexus. 22 October 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  8. "Pop card validators at Metro stations are put through their paces". Nexus. 21 March 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  9. "Timetables and stations: East Boldon". Nexus. Retrieved 19 May 2020.

Sources
  • Butt, R. V. J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199.

Notes
  1. Some earlier trains operate as far as Park Lane.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.