Just back from Prague and with new reviews to write :)
Just back from Prague and with new reviews to write :)
Member since:09.03.2007
Reviews:36
Members who trust:18
I have used the Metro system ever since its inception in (runs off to Wikipedia to check) in 1980. Back then it was a brand new, shiny system and it used to cost the princely sum of 5p to travel into Newcastle city centre from where I lived. Things have changed a lot since then and not just the prices.
The routes ======== The metro system is made up of several routes, all of which converge at Monument metro station, which is the centre of Newcastle. One of the routes follows a circular path via the coast, visiting stations such as Whitley Bay, Tynemouth etc – making it an ideal way for tourists or locals to get to the coast. For people who use the metro service regularly it means that most parts of Newcastle can be access fairly easily by this route – if there is not a station immediately near where you want to be then you can get close enough to walk or get a bus to your destination.
The second
route (and for me the most useful one) runs to Newcastle Airport from the city centre. I have used this route many times and have found it invaluable as it means I can get from home to the airport for approximately 1/10 of what it would cost in a taxi. Admittedly it is a lot slower, but if I have time on my hands I would always choose to use this route.
The third (and most recent) route runs from Newcastle City Centre to Sunderland and on to the outskirts of Sunderland. I have only used this route a couple of times (I don’t often feel the need to go to Sunderland), but from my limited observations this seems a spectacularly unpopular route (and indeed the local press seem to be of the same opinion as well). The main use for this route seems to be for people travelling to and from college/university or people going to the Newcastle v Sunderland derby matches (although this is strongly discouraged by the police). The creation of this route does not seem to have been backed with sufficient new trains either and the existing routes have suffered timetable cuts.
Ticketing ======= The entire metro system is divided into 3 zones, called spookily enough Zones 1, 2 and 3. The ticket prices are fixed for each Zone and at every metro station you simply find the ticket machine, look for you location and this will tell you the zone you need to pay for. This makes it quite easy to plan your route. Return tickets are also available and you can also get Day savers, which allow you to make unlimited journeys on the system. A single ticket for Zone 1 costs in the region of £2 per journey.
Good points ========= When everything goes well the Metro is a fantastic system, easily better than the Tube. The trains are bright and airy and because the majority of the route is above ground you don’t get the claustrophobic feeling I often find on the tube trains. The routes are cleverly designed so that you can get to most places in Newcastle (missing off the West End of Newcastle and the Metrocentre however).
Another good feature of the Metro system is that the trains run until after pub chucking out time. The last Metro I can get is around quarter to 12 meaning I can easily catch the last metro and save on taxi fares (you may be seeing from this review that I try and avoid taxis wherever possible).
Bad points ======== - Frequency of trains. With working in London, I am used to the tube coming every few minutes or so. The general wait time for a metro train is around 10 minutes on most lines. This does not sound a lot, but during the morning rush hour the trains can be incredibly packed and indeed it is sometimes impossible to get on a train and you have to wait for the next one. - Reliability of trains. This has been a bugbear for me for quite a while now. It seems more and more than Nexus (the company who run the Metro) are allowing the trains and tracks to fall into disrepair. Virtually every day it seems there are cancellations, due to the ubiquitous “technical difficulties”. This has a knock on effect with the previous point as well – one cancellation and all of the following trains are full. - Safety. Generally the metro system is very safe and certainly feels safer than, for example the Tube. I have noticed over the years that the metro is getting less and less safe and whilst I have never experienced problems myself I have seen incidents occur and have read about them in the paper. The main incidents seem to be either gangs of “chavs” who roam certain lines causing trouble and the late night metro, one line of which is particularly notorious for drink fuelled trouble. Nexus to their credit have tried to combat the late night problems by installing guards onto the trains and this seems to have curbed it somewhat. Other types of crime don’t seem to be a real problem on the system – pick pocketing etc is certainly not common.
Conclusion ======== In conclusion the metro is a good system, plagued by some of the problems found on most light rail services. With a little bit more investment it could be so much better though.
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Love the title, did you know that several years ago they had a competition for a male and female voice to give out that message? Those voices disappeared long ago and I agree it is not as good as it was in the mid 80s when I first started to use it.
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Advantages: Frequent, fast, clean, easy to use and get around, excellent accessibility Disadvantages: Lack of staff at stations, pricing not as good value as it used to be
sosull 14.06.2007 ·
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Review of Tyne and Wear Metro
Advantages: Frequent, fast, clean, easy to use and get around, excellent accessibility Disadvantages: Lack of staff at stations, pricing not as good value as it used to be
sosull 14.06.2007 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Tyne and Wear Metro
Jun 18th, 2007
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