Music lovers going to see Sam Fender and P!NK in the North East next month have been warned to plan their journeys carefully – with a series of busy Metro stations set to be closed on the night of the clashing concerts.
Transport chiefs are grappling with the unprecedented problem of having two packed-out gigs at the region’s two biggest football stadiums, St James’ Park and the Stadium of Light, at the same time. The two chart-topping acts are each playing two concerts next month, but will coincide on one night – Saturday, June 10.
In a bid to prevent the Tyne and Wear Metro descending into chaos, multiple stations in and around Newcastle city centre will either be exit-only or be entirely shut down that night. Nexus chiefs say that the city centre stations are simply incapable of handling hundreds of people getting both on and off trains, as Fender fans leave St James’ and P!NK patrons return from Wearside, without it causing major delays across the network.
To deal with the tens of thousands of people trying to get home from the Sam Fender gig, Nexus has drafted in more than 50 double-decker buses leaving from different points in the city centre roughly every five minutes after it ends. They will run on four different routes, going as far afield as Chester-le-Street, which have been specially designed over the last six months using data on the postcodes of people who have purchased tickets for the concert.
In Sunderland, the same plan used for Beyoncé and previous gigs at the Stadium of Light will be used – with departing fans asked to queue at either St Peters or Stadium of Light Metro, while Park Lane and Sunderland stations will be shut after 10pm for Metro passengers. Metro trains will be running later than usual to help get concert goers home, including a later train to South Shields from Pelaw.
Bosses told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the decision to close Metro stations in Newcastle was nothing to do with reliability problems with the Metro’s ageing fleet, but was simply a matter of capacity.
The following crowd control measures will in place on Saturday, June 10 in Newcastle city centre:
- St James Metro – closed from 8pm;
- Monument platform 1 (towards Heworth) will be closed from 10pm;
- Monument platform 2 (towards South Gosforth) will be closed from 10pm;
- Monument platform 3 (towards Wallsend) will remain open for travel towards Whitley Bay via Wallsend;
- Monument platform 4 (to St James) – exit only from 8.00pm;
- Manors– Closed from 10.00pm;
- Jesmond – Closed from 10.00pm;
- Haymarket– exit only from 10.00pm (no entry into the station);
- Central Station – exit only from 10.00pm (no entry into the station).
The following bus services, starting in Newcastle, are being put on by Nexus in addition to the usual Saturday night network:
- Bus SF1 will depart from Blackett Street, stopping only at Gosforth High Street/Brandling Arms, Regent Centre Interchange, Fawdon Mormon Church and Kingston Park Metro;
- Bus SF2 departs from St Mary’s Place, stopping only at South Gosforth roundabout, Longbenton shops, Benton cemetery, Forest Hall shops, Palmersville Metro and Cramlington Manor Walks;
- Bus SF3 departs from Market Street, stopping only at Gateshead Interchange, Low Fell The Cannon and Chester-le-Street Red Lion.
- An enhanced 306 bus departs from stand L at Haymarket bus station. This bus will serve all regular stops between Haymarket and North Shields. A 10 minute frequency will be in operation after the concert.
Huw Lewis, Customer Services Director at Nexus, urged anyone travelling that weekend to plan ahead.
He added: “In both cities some Metro stations will be closed just before the concerts end so that we can manage the huge numbers we expect safely and comfortably at the remaining stations, to make sure trains keep running smoothly without getting delayed at overcrowded platforms; this is something that has worked well at the Great North Run and previous major concerts. Where stations are closed customers will be directed to the nearest alternative station, where we will have customer service teams managing crowd control, or on to fast and frequent shuttle buses leaving Newcastle city centre.
“The bus companies are providing more than 50 buses and drivers which means that as well as serving interchanges and town centres on Metro they will be going on to places including Cramlington and Low Fell which Metro does not reach. You’ll be able to travel on both Metro and shuttle buses with the same return or day tickets to make things as simple as possible at the end of what promises to be a great Saturday night.”
Full details of the public transport services available for the Sam Fender and P!NK concerts are available at nexus.org.uk/concerts.
For the first Sam Fender gig on Friday, June 9, St James’ Metro and Monument’s platform 4 will be closed from 8pm. The Park Lane and Sunderland station closures after 10pm will remain the same for the second P!NK concert on Sunday, June 11.
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