Newcastle Station
General information
Other names	Central Newcastle
Location	Neville Street Newcastle upon Tyne
Coordinates	54°58′06″N1°37′01″W / 54.9683766°N 1.6170427°W /54.9683766; -1.6170427
Grid reference	NZ246638
Owned by	Network Rail
Managed by	London North Eastern Railway
Transit authority	Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive
Platforms	12
Other information
Station code	NCL
Classification	DfT category A
History
Original company	Newcastle and Carlisle Railway York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway
Pre-grouping	North Eastern Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway British Rail
Key dates
29 August 1850	Opened asNewcastle-on-Tyne Central
1890s	Extended
Passengers
2019/20	8.815 million
Interchange	0.409 million
2020/21	1.555 million
Interchange	69,344
2021/22	7.040 million
Interchange	0.269 million
2022/23	8.403 million
Interchange	0.307 million
2023/24	9.148 million
Interchange	0.349 million
Listed Building – Grade I
Feature	Passenger buildings and train shed with platforms
Designated	14 June 1954
Reference no.	1355291[1]
Location
Notes Passenger statistics from theOffice of Rail and Road

Newcastle station (also known asNewcastle Central and locally asCentral Station) is a railway station inNewcastle,Tyne and Wear,England,United Kingdom. It is located on theEast Coast Main Line, around 268 miles (432 km) north ofLondon King's Cross.^[2] It is the primary national rail station serving Newcastle upon Tyne and is an interchange for local services provided by theTyne and Wear Metro network whoseCentral Station is situated beneath the national rail station. It is the busiest station in Tyne & Wear, as well as the busiest inNorth East England, and the seventh busiest in Northern England as a whole.^[3]

The main line serving the station is theEast Coast Main Line fromLondon toEdinburgh viaBerwick andNewcastle.TransPennine Express maintains a frequent service toLiverpool andManchester, andCrossCountry provides services to theWest Midlands andSouth West of England. The station is also on theDurham Coast Line which provides commuter connections toGateshead,Sunderland,Hartlepool,Stockton, andMiddlesbrough. Additionally, the station is served by theTyne Valley Line toHexham andCarlisle. Direct destinations from the station includeLondon,Edinburgh,Aberdeen,Glasgow,Manchester,Liverpool,Leeds,Durham,York,Darlington,Bristol,Reading,Birmingham,Derby andPlymouth.

The station opened in August 1850, as part of the thenNewcastle & Carlisle Railway andYork, Newcastle & Berwick Railway. Now aGrade I listed building, it is located in the city'sGrainger Town area, to the west of theCastle Keep.^[1] InSimon Jenkins'Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations, the station was one of only ten to be awarded five stars.^[4]

A scheme for a central station was proposed byRichard Grainger andThomas Sopwith in 1836,^[5] but was not built.

TheNewcastle and Carlisle Railway had agreed to relinquish their insistence on exclusively using their Redheugh terminus on the south bank of theRiver Tyne. They agreed withGeorge Hudson on a general station north of the Tyne, near the Spital. Instead of crossing the Tyne by a low level bridge and climbing to the Spital by a rope-worked incline, they would build an extension crossing at Scotswood and approaching on the north bank. They opened this line and a temporary station at Forth, and passenger trains started using that on 1 March 1847.^{[6][page needed]}

Hudson, known as the "Railway King" was concentrating on connecting his portfolio of railways so as to join Edinburgh with the English network. His Newcastle and Berwick Railway obtained its authorising Act of Parliament in 1845, but for the time being it was to use the Newcastle and North Shields Railway's station at Carliol Square. Building a crossing of the Tyne was obviously going to be a lengthy process, so that he gave the construction of the general station a low priority. The Tyne crossing became theHigh Level Bridge.^{[7][page needed][8][page needed]}

In February 1846, the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway exerted pressure for the general station to be built, and the architectJohn Dobson was appointed by Hudson to design it, in association with the engineerT E Harrison, andRobert Stephenson.Gibson Kyle was clerk of works.^[9] By now the general alignment of Hudson's railways was becoming clear: a main line from the south via Gateshead would approach over the High Level Bridge and enter the general station from the east; the Newcastle and Berwick line would be extended from Carliol Square and also enter from the east; through trains from London to Scotland would reverse in the new station. Newcastle and Carlisle Railway trains would of course enter from the west.^{[7][page needed][8][page needed]}

Dobson produced general plans for the station, now being referred to as theCentral station, on a broad curve to front Neville Street so as to accommodate the alignment of the approaching railways at east and west. It was to a "Romano-Italien design with ornamental work of the Doric order".^[10] Two through platform lines were shown, with three west end bays and two at the east end. There were to be three train shed roofs with spans of 60 feet (18 m). Extensive offices as well as refreshment facilities were shown, and there was to be a covered carriage drive on the Neville Street side extending from theporte-cochère at each end.

On 7 August 1847 a contract was let for the main part of the work to Mackay and Blackstock, for £92,000 (equivalent to £10,620,000 in 2023).^[11] A considerable amount of groundworks was necessary on the large site prior to the actual building work.^{[7][page needed]}

The work did not progress speedily, and in 1849 Hudson's collection of railway companies suffered a financial shock. At a time of more difficult trading and a tighter money market, Hudson's personal dealings were exposed as shady. TheYork, Newcastle and Berwick Railway had been formed by merger of the previous smaller companies, and the YN&BR wished to reduce the financial commitment to the Central Station substantially; hotel accommodation and the covered carriage drive were eliminated. One of the through platforms was also removed from the plan.^{[7][page needed]}

As built the site covered three acres and the length of the platform faces was 830 yards (760 m).^{[10][page needed]}

The train shed proved faster to construct and on 29 August 1850, Queen Victoria visited the station by train and formally opened it. The day was declared a public holiday in Newcastle.^[12] The following day YN&BR trains were diverted into the station.^{[note 1]}

The train shed was, jointly with the Lime Street station in Liverpool, the first to be designed and built in Britain using curvedwrought iron ribs to support an arched roof. The large section of the ribs was fabricated using curved web plates specially rolled using bevelled rolls; the novel technique was created by Thomas Charlton of Hawks Crawshay, and was estimated to have saved 14% on the cost of the roof ironwork, compared with cutting rectilinear plates to the curve.^{[7][page needed]}

The station was lit by gas; a demonstration of electric arc-lighting was made, but was not at that date a practical possibility for the large station space. The platforms were positioned 15 inches above rail level.

The station was shared from the beginning by theNewcastle and North Shields Railway, which abandoned its earlier terminus atCarliol Square to the east which had operated since 1839. TheNewcastle and Carlisle Railway started using Central station from 1 January 1851, and also abandoned its earlier terminus at Forth.^[13]

In 1861, the York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway had already merged with others to form theNorth Eastern Railway, and now it was desired to amalgamate with the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway too. The Corporation of Newcastle used the opportunity of the necessary Parliamentary Bill for the amalgamation to insist on construction of the abandoned porte-cochère, and this was designed by Thomas Prosser and completed in 1863.^[14]

In the 1860s, the passenger train service was increasing considerably, especially as branch lines opened, six platforms were increased to nine in 1871 and to twelve in 1877, and then to fifteen in 1894: an additional through island platform was provided in 1871, occupying space formerly in use for stabling carriages. Increase in traffic continued, as also increasing train lengths and it was clear that a major extension of the station was essential. Newcastle had been given city status in 1882 and was supportive of the work, seeing it as a civic improvement. Forth Street was displaced southwards and two new trainshed roofs covered a southward extension of the station; in addition a large expansion to the east took place, with additional bay platforms there on the north side of the former bays. The original through track was blocked to form east and west bays, so that there were still only three through platform lines. This work was completed in 1894.^{[7][page needed][13]}

The new group of bay platforms at the east end had their own concourse quadrangle, known at the time as the "Tynemouth Square". There was a separate booking hall for those local services. At this stage the roof covered seven and a half acres in area; there were fifteen platforms with a length of 3,000 yards (2,700 m).^{[10][page needed]}

In 1901 an early steam locomotive was on display at the station:

[The station] is further graced by a pedestal on which stands a curious old locomotive rejoicing in the name of "Billy". The true early history of "Billy" is well-nigh veiled in the mists of antiquity, and it was only by diligent enquiry that Mr Holliday, the Station Master, was able to learn a little of her antecedents. That "she" was constructed as far back as 1824 – 1826 is however certain, and on that score alone she is entitled to an introduction to such of the readers of the Railway Magazine as have until now been unaware of her existence. For about fifty-five years (until 1879) she performed good service, first at the Springwell, and latterly at the Killingworth colliery, from which place she actually steamed into Newcastle in 1881 to celebrate George Stephenson's Centenary.^{[10][page needed]}

An image of the locomotive in Bywell's article is captioned "Puffing billy" but it is notPuffing Billy of 1814, which is currently on display at the Science Museum in London.

The locomotive in Bywell's article is known simply as Billy (Built in 1826). It was presented to Newcastle upon Tyne Corporation for preservation in 1881. Initially it was displayed on a plinth at the north end of the High Level Bridge, but was moved to the interior of Newcastle Central Station in 1896; it remained there until 1945, when it was moved to the city's Museum of Science and Industry; it was moved again in 1981 to theStephenson Railway Museum in nearby North Shields, where it is still on display.^[15]

The early history of the locomotive is uncertain; it is probably a George Stephenson locomotive, and was probably built at Killingworth Colliery workshops around 1815–1820.^[16]

v t e Railways between Newcastle and Gateshead
Legend
Tyne and Wear Metro toMonument East Coast Main Line toMorpeth Central Station Tyne Valley Line to Scotswood Newcastle King Edward VII Bridge High Level Bridge River Tyne QEII Metro Bridge Gateshead Tyne Valley Line toMetroCentre Gateshead Interchange East Coast Main Line toDurham Durham Coast Line toHeworth Tyne and Wear Metro toGateshead Stadium

In 1900 the North Eastern Railway started replacing the gas lighting in the station with electric arc equipment. Further use of electricity came from 1904 when several suburban lines were electrified using thethird rail system, to form theTyneside Electrics system, electric trains were introduced, using Central Station from 1 July 1904. The tracks on platforms 1 to 6 were equipped with electrified third rails, and platform 7 was later electrified to handle electric trains toSouth Shields.^[13]

Another major development came on 1 October 1906 when theKing Edward VII Bridge was opened, crossing the Tyne to the south-west of the station: Since 1850East Coast Main Line trains had entered Newcastle from the south via theHigh Level Bridge to the south-east, this meant however that they had to reverse in order to continue their journey, which lengthened journey times and led to congestion at the busy junction east of the station. The four-track King Edward Bridge remedied this by allowing north–south trains to leave or enter from either side of the station. The triangular junction at the Gateshead side also allowed for greater flexibility, allowing trains fromSunderland to use the new bridge if necessary.^[13]

In 1909, Central station became Newcastle's only major city-centre station when the formerBlyth and Tyne Railway's terminus atNewcastle New Bridge Street was closed, and its trains diverted to Central station via a new connection toManors station.^[13]

TheTyne and Wear Metro system opened in 1980, taking over and improving many of the Tyneside suburban routes that had declined under British Railways management. The undergroundCentral Station for Metro trains was constructed during the late 1970s underneath the main line station, and opened in 1981. Part of the porte-cochère was temporarily dismantled while excavation work took place.^[17] The Metro system was a considerable success; Many conventional rail services were transferred there, and several of the east end bays were closed and converted to car parking and other usage. The Carlisle line was diverted in 1982 to enter Newcastle over the King Edward Bridge of 1906, and a large out-of-town shopping development, theMetro Centre, was opened with a station on that line in 1987. The changing pattern of railway services meant that terminating trains were significantly fewer and through trains had increased. The emphasis on bay platforms at the station was no longer appropriate.

The opportunity was taken in conjunction with the East Coast Main Line electrification scheme, inaugurated in 1991 byBritish Rail, to extend the station southwards to provide more through platforms. This encroached on to land occupied by through tracks previously used by goods trains, which had seen little use since the withdrawal of many goods services in the 1960s. A new island platform was provided, built around the southern wall of the station. The two platform faces are divided so as to provide four numbered platforms, 5 to 8, generally used for local trains.^{[7][page needed]}

The eastern approach to the station in 1960, viewed fromThe Castle

A similar view in 2005. The station was reduced in size after the Metro replaced suburban heavy rail services.

Newcastle is a principal stop on theEast Coast Main Line. The station is operated byLondon North Eastern Railway.

London North Eastern Railway provides high-speed inter-city services southbound every half-hour to London (one fast, one semi-fast) as well as a half-hourly service to Edinburgh.

• 2 trains per hour northbound toEdinburgh Waverley, one non-stop, and the other calling atBerwick-upon-Tweed. Extra services at peak times to Edinburgh also call atMorpeth,Alnmouth andDunbar. At weekends, all daytime services arriving from London continue to Edinburgh.
  • 4 services are extended daily toAberdeen
  • 1 service is extended daily toGlasgow Central
  • 1 service is extended daily toInverness
  • 1 service is extended daily toStirling
• southbound toLondon King's Cross:
  • 1 semi-fast service calling atDurham,Darlington,Northallerton,York,Doncaster,Newark North Gate,Peterborough and other stations on the ECML at peak times with a journey time of approximately 3 hours 20 minutes.
  • 1 fast service calling at Darlington and York only with a journey time of 2 hours 50 minutes.

Rolling stock used:Class 800,Class 801

Early-morning service, theFlying Scotsman is operated by LNER, it originates at Edinburgh Waverley, and terminates at London King's Cross. It calls at Newcastle only between these two stations, and arrives at London King's Cross at 09.40. As of 2024, no corresponding northbound service is provided.

Rolling stock used: Class 800, Class 801

CrossCountry operates services north into Scotland, supplementing London North Eastern Railway services, and southbound there are two trains per hour to the CrossCountry hub atBirmingham New Street, from where they extend towards the South West and South Coast.^[18]

• 1 tph to Edinburgh Waverley, with 1 tpd continuing to Glasgow Central, and 1 tpd continuing to Aberdeen.
• 1 tph toPlymouth viaLeeds,Birmingham New Street andBristol Temple Meads, with 2 tpd continuing toPenzance.
• 4 tpd toReading via Doncaster, Birmingham New Street andOxford.

Rolling stock used:Class 220,Class 221

Newcastle is a terminus forTransPennine Express (TPE) services to and fromManchester and also sees services fromLiverpool call at the station heading towardsEdinburgh.

With the electrification of theManchester to Liverpool Line, from May 2014 a new TPE timetable was introduced featuring an hourly express service between Newcastle and Liverpool via Leeds and Manchester, reducing journey times to Liverpool to three hours as part of theNorthern Hub scheme.^[19] Services to Leeds/York are also supplemented by London North Eastern Railway and CrossCountry.

• southbound toLiverpool Lime Street calling atChester-le-Street, Durham, Darlington, Northallerton, York, Leeds,HuddersfieldManchester Victoria,Lea Green andNewton-Le-Willows.
• northbound toEdinburgh Waverley calling atMorpeth,Alnmouth,Berwick-upon-Tweed,Reston,Dunbar andEast Linton

Rolling stock used:Class 802 bi-mode multiple units

Northern Trains East Coast Main Line
v t e
Newcastle – Morpeth – Chathill
Newcastle Manors Cramlington Morpeth Pegswood Widdrington Acklington Alnmouth for Alnwick Chathill
Most services extend to/from Carlisle.

Northern Trains Durham Coast Line
v t e
Newcastle – Middlesbrough via Hartlepool
Newcastle Heworth Sunderland Seaham Horden Hartlepool Seaton Carew Billingham Stockton Thornaby Middlesbrough
Most services extend to/from Hexham orNunthorpe.

Northern Trains Tyne Valley Line
v t e
Newcastle – Carlisle via Hexham
Newcastle Dunston MetroCentre Blaydon Wylam Prudhoe Stocksfield Riding Mill Corbridge Hexham Haydon Bridge Bardon Mill Haltwhistle Brampton Wetheral Carlisle
Most services extend to/from Morpeth orNunthorpe.

Northern Trains operates a number of commuter and regional services :^[20]

• northbound on the East Coast Main Line toCramlington and Morpeth with services extended toChathill at peak hours (except Sundays).
• southbound along theDurham Coast Line toMiddlesbrough calling atHeworth,Sunderland,Seaham,Hartlepool,Seaton Carew,Billingham,Stockton andThornaby. Extended most hours toNunthorpe in order to serveJames Cook railway station atJames Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.
• westbound on theTyne Valley Line toCarlisle calling atMetroCentre,Prudhoe,Hexham,Haydon Bridge,Haltwhistle,Brampton and others at alternate hours.
• westbound slow service on the Tyne Valley Line to Hexham calling atDunston, MetroCentre,Blaydon,Wylam, Prudhoe,Stocksfield,Riding Mill,Corbridge and terminating at Hexham. Extended to Carlisle at peak hours.
• northbound on theNorthumberland line toAshington calling atSeaton Delaval andNewsham and terminating at Ashington.

Rolling stock used:Class 156 andClass 158 diesel multiple units

Open-access operatorLumo provides services northbound toMorpeth and Edinburgh Waverley, and southbound toStevenage and London Kings Cross.^[21][22][23]Rolling stock used:Class 803

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Durham		CrossCountry Cross Country Route		Morpeth
				Terminus
Chester-le-Street		TransPennine Express NorthTransPennine		Cramlington
Durham				Morpeth
Edinburgh Waverley One way operation		London North Eastern Railway Flying Scotsman		London King's Cross One way operation
Durham or Darlington		London North Eastern Railway East Coast Main Line		Terminus
				Alnmouth or Morpeth or Berwick-upon-Tweed or Edinburgh Waverley
				Sunderland Limited service only on weekdays
Heworth		Northern Trains Durham Coast Line		through toTyne Valley Line
through toTyne Valley Line		Northern Trains East Coast Main Line		Manors
Chester-le-Street Limited service		Northern Trains East Coast Main Line		Terminus
through toEast Coast Main Line		Northern Trains Tyne Valley Line		Dunston
through toDurham Coast Line				MetroCentre
Terminus		Northern Trains Northumberland Line		Manors
				Seaton Delaval
Stevenage		Lumo London to Edinburgh		Morpeth
London King's Cross

Proposals to reintroduce passenger rail services between Newcastle Central Station and the communities of south eastNorthumberland have been discussed since the 1990s.^[24][25][26] In the early 2010s,Northumberland County Council became interested in the proposals, commissioningNetwork Rail to complete the first study into the feasibility of the scheme in June 2013.^[27] This was followed by a more detailed study, commissioned in June 2015,^[28] which confirmed that the reintroduction of a frequent seven-day-a-week passenger service between Newcastle Central and Ashington was feasible and could provide economic benefits of £70 million with more than 380,000 people using the line each year by 2034.^[29]

Despite a change in the political leadership of Northumberland County Council following the2017 local elections^[30] the authority continued to develop the project,^[31] encouraged by theDepartment for Transport's November 2017 report,A Strategic Vision for Rail, which named the line as a possible candidate for a future reintroduction of passenger services.^[32][33] More detailed plans were announced in July 2019 which would have split the project into four phases^[34] to reduce the initial cost of the scheme. The initial phase, at an estimated £90 million,^[35] would have seen the creation of new or reopened National Rail stations atNorthumberland Park (for interchange with the Tyne and Wear Metro),Newsham,Bedlington andAshington and several other infrastructure upgrades undertaken^[34] to allow an hourly passenger train to be provided^[36] between them and Newcastle. Two further stations, atSeaton Delaval andBlyth Bebside were to be added in Phase 2 and other infrastructure upgrades would follow in Phases 3 and 4^[34] to enable the frequency to be doubled to half-hourly.^[36] In August 2020, it was reported that these four proposed phases might be merged into a single one.^[37]

The Department for Transport allocated an initial grant of £1.5 million towards the project costs in January 2020^[38] which was supplemented by an allocation of £10 million of funds from Northumberland County Council the following month.^[36] This funding enabled detailed on-site ground investigation works to begin in October 2020.^[39] The allocation of a further £34 million ofUK Government funding for the project in January 2021 enables the necessary land to be purchased, detailed designs to be prepared and some early preparatory and site works to begin.^[40] In January 2021, it was anticipated that the UK Government would fund the remainder of the project cost, estimated at £166 million as of January 2021, once the final phase of design works were completed.^[41] However, in April 2021, it was reported that government officials were seeking to reduce the cost of the project as part of the Department for Transport'sProject SPEED initiative.^[42] It was reported that the cost-saving measures under consideration included and cutting initial service frequencies from two to one trains per hour and dropping the proposed Blyth Bebside station from initial project scope^[42] (although the latter option was later publicly ruled out byMinister for RailwaysChris Heaton-Harris).^[43]

Northumberland County Council submitted aTransport and Works Act Order application to theSecretary of State for TransportGrant Shapps on 26 May 2021,^[44][45] under which they would be conferred certain additional powers deemed necessary for the new stations to be constructed and the line upgraded to carry regular passenger services.^[46] It is anticipated that the main construction phase might begin as early as June 2022,^[36] enabling an opening date in 2024.^[41]

The station currently has 11 operational platforms.

• Platform 1: A bay platform facing east, serving terminatingNorthern Trains services from theEast Coast Main Line. Following the May 2019 timetable change, this platform is used less frequently, as mostNorthern Trains services fromMorpeth now continue west along theTyne Valley line.^[47]
• Platform 2: The main through platform forCrossCountry andLNER services heading north along the East Coast Main Line towardsEdinburgh Waverley.
• Platforms 3 & 4: The main through platforms for CrossCountry services heading towardsSheffield,Birmingham New Street, theSouth West and theSouth Coast, and LNER services heading south along the East Coast Main Line towardsLondon King's Cross. These platforms are also (less frequently) used by services heading north along theEast Coast Main Line, as well as by services terminating at Newcastle.
• Platforms 5–8: The four platforms all share the newer island platform, mainly used by Northern Trains services heading west along theTyne Valley line towardsHexham andCarlisle, and east along theDurham Coast Line towardsSunderland,Hartlepool andMiddlesbrough.
• Platforms 9–11: Three bay platforms facing west. Platforms 9 & 10 are used by Northern Trains services heading west along theTyne Valley line. Platform 11 is used by CrossCountry services towardsBirmingham New Street, theSouth West and theSouth Coast andTransPennine Express services towardsLiverpool Lime Street railway station and Manchester stations.

The former Platform 12 was mainly used by CrossCountry services terminating at Newcastle. It was closed in May 2023 to allow track and signalling modifications which enabled longer trains to occupy the adjacent platform 11.^[48]

Plans were revealed on 30 April 2013 for a major redevelopment,^[49] including an £8.6 million project to regenerate the inside of the station,^[50] and a further £11.4 million to develop the area surrounding the station.^[51] The portico redevelopment was completed in April 2014.^[52]

The redevelopment plans contained a number of changes, including:

• New retail space in the portico area, which was glazed to provide weather protection as well as retail units replacing the existing ticket office and travel centre. This double the previous retail space to make it equivalent to that ofKing's Cross Station.^{[49][50][53][54]}
• The travel centre and ticket office were reduced in size and relocated to the area beyond theSainsbury's Local store.^[49][50][55]
• Improved toilet facilities.^[49][50][54]
• Clearer signage.^[49][50][54]
• Increased covered cycle-park space.^[50]
• A simpler layout that is claimed to accentuate the grade one listed architecture including theCastle Keep. The line of sight across the concourse was also improved.^[50]
• Sand-blasting of the walls and new lighting were fitted.^[55]
• Previous access points to the station were moved to make it easier to enter and leave the station.^[49]
• Improved waiting rooms.^[54]
• Alteration to the existing bridge structure.^[54]
• New lifts and escalators.^[54]
• New glazed canopies.^[54]

The redevelopment plan also included a number of changes to the area surrounding the station, including:

• New taxi rank to the east side of the former portico.^[50][53][55]
• A two-way cycle track at the west end of Neville Street.^[49][55]
• Change of traffic flow patterns to ease congestion.^[56]
• Pedestrian crossings on Neville Street and Grainger Street.^[49]
• Pedestrianisation of the car-park space outside the Centurion Pub.^[53][55]
• Wider footways and pavement cafes outside the station.^[49]

The work began in May 2013 and was completed during April 2014 by Miller Construction.^[50] The station operated as normal throughout the works.^[50] The £8.6 million funding for the internal station work was provided by theDepartment for Transport's Station Commercial Project Facility Fund.^[50] The external works were jointly funded by NE1, Regional Growth Fund andNewcastle City Council.^[51]

Writing in his 2017 bookBritain's 100 Best Stations, British journalist and author SirSimon Jenkins described the glazing of the portico and its conversion to retail usage as a “disaster” and ”thoughtless”, saying “What had been epic became anaemic.”^[57][58]

In 2021, a restoration of disused toilet facilities near platform 12, thought to date back to the 1890s, was completed.^[59]

Simplified rail network around Newcastle
Legend
East Coast Main Line toEdinburgh Heaton TMD North Tyneside Loop viaWallsend Heaton Riverside Branch viaWalker North Tyneside Loop viaSouth Gosforth Manors Carliol Square Tyne Valley Line viaScotswood   Newcastle King Edward VII Bridge overRiver Tyne   High Level Bridge overRiver Tyne Gateshead Tyne Valley Line viaDunston   Durham Coast Line toMiddlesbrough East Coast Main Line toLondon

Trains cross theRiver Tyne on one of two bridges. The olderHigh Level Bridge south-east of the station, designed byRobert Stephenson opened on 27 September 1849. Its location meant north–south trains had to reverse in the station to continue their journey. TheKing Edward VII Bridge south-west of the station opened on 10 July 1906 allowing north–south trains to continue without reversing. The two bridges enable thetrackwork north and south of the river to form a complete circle, allowing trains to be turned if necessary. The formerGateshead depot, next to the connecting tracks on the south side of the Tyne, mirrored Newcastle station.

The station was noted for its complex set ofdiamond crossings to the east of the station which facilitated access to the High Level Bridge and northbound East Coast Main Line and was said to be the greatest such crossing in the world.^[60] The crossing was the subject of many early-1900s post cards, titledThe Largest Railway Crossing in the World, photographed from the castle (towards the station), or from the station towards the castle.^[61]

The crossing has been simplified in recent years as the opening of theMetro brought about the withdrawal of many heavy-rail suburban services and the closure of the bay platforms they operated from on the north side of the station removing the need for such a complex crossing. Much of this work was carried out in 1988–1989 as part of remodelling and resignalling work associated with ECML electrification. A new island platform on the former goods lines was commissioned as part of this work, with signalling control relocated to the Tyneside IECC on the opposite side of the river.Heaton depot is to the north of the station, on the East Coast Main Line.

• On 17 August 1951, twoelectric multiple units experienced a head-on collision after one of them departed against a danger signal. Two people were killed.^[62]
• On 19 April 1955, a collision occurred betweenV2 locomotive 60968 andFairburn tank locomotive No. 42085 on the diamond crossings. Both locomotives were derailed.^[63]
• On 3 July 1961, there was a significant fire inside the station building.^[64] The fire, having started in a cable duct at the peak of rush hour, saw the station's new signalling system put out of operation, delaying main line trains. Nearly 10,000 square feet of the station's roof was destroyed, but luckily no one was hurt.^[65]

Newcastle station is located above Central metro station on theTyne and Wear Metro, one of five underground stations serving the city centre. Central is an interchange between the Yellow and Green lines, and is the last stop prior to crossing theRiver Tyne towardsGateshead.

Preceding station	Tyne and Wear Metro			Following station
Gateshead towardsSouth Shields		Yellow Line		Monument towardsSt James via Whitley Bay
Gateshead towardsSouth Hylton		Green Line		Monument towardsAirport

• North Tyneside Loop

• Etherington, Robin (August 1988). "All change at Newcastle Central".Rail. No. 83. EMAP National Publications. p. 12.ISSN 0953-4563.OCLC 49953699.
• Etherington, Robin (12 February – 8 March 1989). "New platforms 5, 6, 7 ad 8 at Newcastle Central".Rail. No. 90. EMAP National Publications. p. 6.ISSN 0953-4563.OCLC 49953699.
• "£8.6million development for Newcastle Central".The Railway Magazine. Vol. 159, no. 1345. Horncastle: Mortons Media Group. May 2013. p. 88.ISSN 0033-8923.OCLC 750645684.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toNewcastle railway station.

• Newcastle Central Station - Part of the 2000 art exhibition "Stephenson's Legacy." Includes old photographs of the station.

• Railway stations in Tyne and Wear
• Former North Eastern Railway (United Kingdom) stations
• Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1850
• Railway stations served by CrossCountry
• Railway stations served by London North Eastern Railway
• Railway stations served by Lumo
• Railway stations served by Northern
• Railway stations served by TransPennine Express
• Buildings and structures in Newcastle upon Tyne
• Grade I listed buildings in Tyne and Wear
• Grade I listed railway stations
• Neoclassical architecture in England
• Transport in Newcastle upon Tyne
• William Bell railway stations
• DfT Category A stations

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