Historic bridge to undergo major work starting next week

Wellington Street railway bridge, in Gateshead, is undergoing major strengthening and repair work from next week.

The £3.2 million project is designed to futureproof the steel bridge, which was built in 1902. The structure will also be painted. Work starts Monday 24 January.

In order to minimise any disruption, the work is being carried out in two phases.

The first stage will run between January and late spring and see the road closed under the western span. Following this, teams will switch locations, with the eastern span shut until the project completes in October 2022. During this time, the phases of the traffic lights will be adjusted to keep road users safe and traffic flowing.

Sarah Reid, route director for Network Rail’s East Coast route, said: “This is a really important project which will make sure trains can continue to run reliably. The project will help minimise future disruption to passengers and mean people can continue to enjoy strong rail links and connections with towns and cities across the country.

“We know this work is going to have an impact on motorists and we’re really sorry for this. We have done all that we can to reduce this impact and we’ll continue to work closely with Gateshead Council on this project.”

Download article