Road and rail disruption as bus gets stuck under Metro bridge
Road and rail travel was disrupted on Tuesday morning after a coach became wedged under a bridge in Gateshead[1].
The incident, which happened on Hepburn Gardens in Felling, involved a coach getting stuck under the Green Lane Metro bridge just before 9am. Emergency services worked to remove the bus, with the recovery operation taking almost three hours.
Metros were suspended between Gateshead Stadium and Heworth for the duration of the operation, while rail services were also suspended for a shorter period between Newcastle and Sunderland[2]. Ticket acceptance on local buses was in place for Metro users, while rail passengers were encouraged to travel via Darlington.
The bridge was inspected ahead of Metro services being resumed just before 1pm, although with systemwide delays expected and trains operating at a reduced speed in the affected area.
A spokesperson for Nexus said: “Metro services have now resumed between Gateshead Stadium and Heworth. The bridge at Hepburn Gardens has been inspected by engineers and we have got the green light to resume operations following the earlier incident where a coach was stuck underneath the bridge.”
A spokesperson for Northumbria Police[4] confirmed that no injuries had been reported and that the bus had been recovered. North East Coach Travel were also contacted for comment.
References
- ^ Gateshead (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
- ^ Sunderland (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
- ^ List of all roadworks and road closures due to take place in the North East this week (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)
- ^ Northumbria Police (www.chroniclelive.co.uk)