The Morpeth North Curve was actually built in the late 1970’s and completed by 1980, finally providing a direct route between Pegswood and Hepscott, rather than reversal at Morpeth. According to Warn (1976 p.35/36) in his ‘Main Line Railways of Northumberland’ book, a curve was authorised in 1882 ‘to avoid reversing coal trains travelling fromContinue reading “What if the Morpeth North Curve had been built by the Victorians? Part 1”
Category Archives: ECML
Plessey Viaduct, Flying Scotsman and the Northumberland Loop
All of the below is purely my own opinions and doesn’t reflect that of any other organisations or persons. The ‘Northumberland Loop’ refers to the Blyth and Tyne lines north of Newcastle Upon Tyne that runs northward to Bedlington, Northumberland then west towards Morpeth and Pegswood. The Loop name is derived from the Northumberland LineContinue reading “Plessey Viaduct, Flying Scotsman and the Northumberland Loop”
The X18 – The Connecting bus between (nearly) all the railway stations on the Northumberland Coast?
At time of writing (October 2023), the X18 is a long-distance bus connecting Newcastle Upon Tyne to Berwick Upon Tweed, broadly paralleling the East Coast Main Line (ECML) throughout its trip – but could a few modest changes to the route make it a much better intermodal choice (bus + rail)? The existing timetable showsContinue reading “The X18 – The Connecting bus between (nearly) all the railway stations on the Northumberland Coast?”
The Case Against Dualling the A1 in Northumberland
5 Reasons why A1 Dualling is not a ‘magic wand’ project: 1. Induced demand: Widened roads almost universally lead to more traffic – local examples of this include the Tyne Tunnel (more traffic passing through the tunnels caused chaos at Silverlink and Testos junctions). Its also surely inferred from the ‘economic growth’ arguments of aContinue reading “The Case Against Dualling the A1 in Northumberland”
Northumberland Loop Line: Edinburgh to Newcastle-Upon-Tyne via Pegswood, Bebside for Blyth, & Northumberland Park?
At time of writing (mid February 2023), work is progressing well on the Northumberland Line between Ashington, Northumberland and Newcastle Upon Tyne, with intermediate stations at Bedlington, Bebside (for Blyth), Newsham, Seaton Delaval and Northumberland Park (interchange with Tyne & Wear Metro). Plans at present are for a simple local train service running half hourlyContinue reading “Northumberland Loop Line: Edinburgh to Newcastle-Upon-Tyne via Pegswood, Bebside for Blyth, & Northumberland Park?”
Proposal: Pegswood Parkway
Does Pegswood railway station have a lot of untapped potential? While currently quite a quiet station – currently seeing only the ‘Chathill Flyer’ a few times a day, it might have great potential as a Parkway (Park and Ride) for the East Coast Mainline (ECML). As can be seen from a satellite image, the stationContinue reading “Proposal: Pegswood Parkway”
The Northumberland Coast – Better rail services needed between Newcastle-Upon-Tyne and Berwick-Upon-Tweed
Articles such as this by National Geographic, which (rightly) applaud the fantastic Northumberland Coast area are conspicuous by the absence of mentioning ‘access by rail’ when advertising how to spend a weekend here. Sadly local trains on the ECML between Newcastle and Berwick, long campaigned for by SENRUG still seems some way off with theContinue reading “The Northumberland Coast – Better rail services needed between Newcastle-Upon-Tyne and Berwick-Upon-Tweed”
Ryan Hogg 