Monkseaton Metro station


Monkseaton is a station on the Tyne and Wear Metro, serving Monkseaton and Whitley Bay in North Tyneside. The station joined the network in August 1980, following the opening of the line between Haymarket and Tynemouth – the first stage of the network to open.
Monkseaton has been served by a station since June 1864, with the station at the current site opened in July 1915, under the North Eastern Railway. Following closure for conversion in the late 1970s, much of the original North Eastern Railway station building, dating from 1915, was retained. However, the southbound platform and buildings were demolished and replaced.
The station serves as a terminus for trains from Pelaw during peak hours, with trains using the siding to the south of the station to turn around.
The station features two stained glass artworks on the northbound platform, incorporated into the original North Eastern Railway station canopies. The two installations, Beach and Shipyards, were commissioned in 1983, and created by artist, Mike Davies.
Monkseaton was recently refurbished, along with Cullercoats and West Monkseaton, in 2018, as part of the Metro: All Change programme. The refurbishment involved the installation of new seating and lighting, resurfaced platforms, and improved security and accessibility. The station was also painted in to the new black and white corporate colour scheme.
Monkseaton was used by 516,133 passengers in 2017–18, making it the fifth-most-used station in North Tyneside, after Longbenton, North Shields, Tynemouth, and Whitley Bay.

Facilities

Step-free access is available at all stations across the Tyne and Wear Metro network, with ramped access to both platforms. The station is equipped with ticket machines, waiting shelter, seating, next train information displays, timetable posters, and an emergency help point on both platforms. Ticket machines are able to accept payment with credit and debit card, notes and coins. The station is also fitted with smartcard validators, which feature at all stations across the network. The station building houses a number of shops and services, including a cafe, shop and micropub.
A small free car park is available, with 22 spaces, plus 1 accessible space. There is also the provision for cycle parking, with 10 cycle pods available for use.

Service and frequency

Monkseaton is served by the, which operates between South Shields and St. James with an end-to-end journey time of 83 minutes.
Services from platform 1 operate towards South Shields, with the first train departing at 05:42. Services from platform 2 operate towards St. James via Whitley Bay, with the first train departing at 05:22. Trains run frequently across the network, at intervals of up to every 12 minutes, and every 15 minutes, with the last trains departing at around midnight.
Additional trains run during morning and evening peak hours between Pelaw and Monkseaton. This provides up to 10 trains per hour through the station at peak times.
Journey times from Monkseaton are: