Contactless payment machines, new lighting, and CCTV will be installed in Tyne and Wear Metro car parks under multi-million pound plans to make them safer and easier for passengers to use.
Council leaders signed off on a £3.2m investment package on Tuesday afternoon that will deliver improvements at six Metro park and ride sites – Bank Foot, Callerton, Regent Centre, Northumberland Park, Four Lane Ends and the Stadium of Light. The upgrades will see outdated coin-only ticket machines replaced by contactless payment, enhanced digital CCTV cameras and more efficient lighting installed, and real-time updates on car park occupancy provided on Nexus’ website and app.
Bosses say they hope the changes will encourage more people to make the switch to public transport for part of their journey and cut down on pollution, especially at a time when fuel prices have skyrocketed. Funding for the scheme was agreed at the North East Joint Transport Committee (JTC) on Tuesday and comes from the government’s Transforming Cities Fund (TCF) programme.
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The North East was given a £198m share of the TCF, a major chunk of which is being used to pay for the Metro Flow project to dual railway tracks in South Tyneside and significantly boost the network’s capacity by 24,000 people per day. That massive project will require a 12-week shutdown of the Metro between Pelaw and South Shields between September and December.
Customer services director at Nexus, Huw Lewis, said: “Park and ride sites on Metro are really important in helping to cut congestion and emissions on our region’s roads. That’s why Nexus wants to invest in better and simpler facilities for our customers.
“Our plans underline a commitment to making Metro park and ride a more attractive and cost effective option as the cost of using a car continues to keep going up. The investment will go towards quicker and simplified payment options for our customers.
"Contactless payment will replace coin-only ticket machines, this is in addition to pay-by-phone which was introduced by Nexus last year. The funding will also increase site security by providing new energy-efficient lighting and digital CCTV alongside real-time updates on car park occupancy to Nexus’ apps and to our website.”
There are 1,550 parking spaces across the six sites due to benefit from the new funding. Gateshead Council leader Martin Gannon, who chairs the JTC, added:
Coun Martin Gannon, Chair, North East Joint Transport Committee, said: “This investment is a major upgrade to six Park and Ride sites making them easier to use and more attractive options for local people travelling for work, leisure or to reach education.
“We are committed to helping people make sustainable changes to their journey habits and using Park & Ride for part of your journey is a great way to cut down on mileage, carbon emissions and of course fuel costs.”
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