Rail minister backs bid for more carriages on line
NorthernThe rail minister has given his support to calls for permanent additional carriages on a recently reopened line.
More than 900,000 journeys have been made on the Northumberland Line, connecting the south-east of the county and Tyneside, since it opened in December 2024, prompting calls for greater capacity.
However, operator Northern has said this would be "challenging" due to the number of carriages available in its fleet.
The firm has temporarily allocated rolling stock from other routes, but Rail Minister Lord Hendy has instructed the organisation to look into whether a long-term solution is possible.
His comments came as part of correspondence with Northumberland County Council leader Glen Sanderson, who said he had written to the government to express "concerns" over lack of seating for passengers.
In his response to Sanderson, seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the minister said he "entirely" accepted the need for more capacity.
He wrote: "My officials at Rail North Partnership have now instructed Northern to identify whether any permanent reallocations are possible.
"Northern is also in discussions with other operators to see what suitable rolling stock they may have available to increase capacity ahead of Northern's new train fleet entering service in 2030."
'Exploring all options'
A spokesman for the company said it was "closely monitoring demand" and bringing in additional carriages when possible.
But he added it was "challenging as we have a limited number of carriages in our fleet, which are needed to run more than 2,650 services a day across the North of England".
"Limited capacity at Newcastle station can also prevent us from running longer services at certain times of the day," he added.
"We are exploring all available options and working with industry partners to address these issues."
The number of journeys on the line has been about double the number expected despite two stations – Bedlington and Northumberland Park – still not having opened.
Its success has prompted discussions on an extension, with Newbiggin identified as a key destination.
