Station code DOT DfT category F2 | Grid reference NZ230617 Managed by Northern 2011/12 2,664 Number of platforms 2 | |
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Similar Blaydon railway station, MetroCentre railway station, Widdrington railway station, Manors railway station, Pegswood railway station | ||
Dunston railway station top 8 facts
Dunston railway station serves Dunston, an area of Gateshead, in Tyne and Wear, northern England. It is located on the Tyne Valley Line which runs from Newcastle upon Tyne to Carlisle. Passenger services are provided by Northern, which also manages the station.
Contents
The station first opened on 1 January 1909 and was situated on a section of line built by the NER to link the lines over newly commissioned King Edward VII Bridge with the original 1837 Newcastle and Carlisle Railway freight route to Redheugh Goods and the Dunston coal staithes. It was originally known as Dunston-on-Tyne, and served as the terminus of a shuttle service from Newcastle. This service ended on 4 May 1926 (as a result of the General Strike of 1926) and the station was closed. It was very briefly brought back into use for special evacuation trains during World War II, but remained closed throughout the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.
From 4 October 1982, Tyne Valley Line passenger trains were routed via Dunston due to the closure of Scotswood Bridge, and Dunston station was officially re-opened by British Rail on 1 October 1984. Initially, most Tyne Valley services called at Dunston, but this service frequency was later reduced due to low passenger numbers, particularly after the opening of MetroCentre railway station on 3 August 1987.
Facilities
The station is unmanned and only has basic amenities - a single waiting shelter on the island platform, timetable poster boards and a customer help point at the station entrance. No ticket facilities are offered, so these must be bought in advance or on the train. Step-free access is available via an inclined ramp from the entrance on the road above.
Services
Up until December 2013 on Mondays to Saturdays, four services each day called at Dunston; two to Newcastle (one of these continued to Nunthorpe via Sunderland and Middlesbrough) and two to the MetroCentre (one of which continues to Hexham).
No services called here on Sundays.
The December 2013 timetable change has seen significant improvements, with an hourly service in each direction (including Sundays) provided by the Newcastle to MetroCentre shuttle. A limited number of weekday & Saturday Hexham trains also now stop here. This gives the station its best service level since the late 1980s.