| Wansbeck Road | |
| Style: | Tyne and Wear Metro |
| Type: | Tyne and Wear Metro station |
| Address: | Coxlodge, Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Country: | England |
| Coordinates: | 55.0143°N -1.6357°W |
| Map Type: | United Kingdom Newcastle-upon-Tyne#Tyne and Wear |
| Grid Name: | Grid reference |
| Transit Authority: | Tyne and Wear PTE |
| Platform: | 2 |
| Tracks: | 2 |
| Zone: | B |
| Bicycle: | 3 cycle pods |
| Accessible: | Step-free access to platform |
| Original: | Tyne and Wear Metro |
| Years: | 10 May 1981 |
| Events: | Opened |
| Passengers: | 0.17 million[1] |
| Pass Year: | 2017/18 |
| Code: | WBR |
Wansbeck Road is a Tyne and Wear Metro station, serving the suburbs of Coxlodge and Gosforth in the English city of Newcastle upon Tyne. It opened in 1981 and is situated next to, and partly over, the bridge carrying the metro line over the Wansbeck Road.
The station is located on the route of the former Gosforth and Ponteland Light Railway, which opened on 1 March 1905, with passenger services commencing three months later, but which never included a station at Wansbeck Road. The line through the site closed to passengers on 17 June 1929, but remained open to serve freight, latterly to the ICI Callerton explosives depot and Rowntree's Fawdon factory.[2] [3]
In the late 1970s the line through the site was restructured to form the second phase of the Tyne and Wear Metro, between South Gosforth and Bank Foot. This opened on 10 May 1981, and included the new station at Wansbeck Road, which was built on an embankment. A second concrete span was added to the original single-track bridge during the construction. The embankment and restricted working areas made it one of the more challenging stations to construct on the Metro system at the time.[4]
Freight traffic to and from Rowntree's factory and ICI Callerton continued to pass through the station until they closed in July 1988 and March 1989 respectively. In 1991 the Metro line was extended from Bank Foot to Newcastle Airport.[2]
In 2018, the station, along with others on the branch between South Gosforth and Newcastle Airport, were refurbished. The £300,000 project saw improvements to accessibility, security and energy efficiency, as well as the rebranding of the station to the new black and white corporate colour scheme.[5]
The station has two side platforms, on a bridge and embankment above Wansbeck Road, with separate entrances to each platform. Access to the westbound platform is by ramp or stairs from the east side of Wansbeck Road. Access to the eastbound platform is by ramp or stairs from the west side of Wansbeck Road, or by stairs only from the east side. There is no car parking at the station, but there is cycle storage, with three cycle pods.[6]
Both platforms have ticket machines (which accept cash, card and contactless payment), smartcard validators, sheltered waiting area, seating, next train audio and visual displays, timetable and information posters and an emergency help point.[6]
, the station is served by up to five trains per hour on weekdays and Saturday, and up to four trains per hour during the evening and on Sunday. In the southbound direction, trains run to via and . In the northbound direction, trains run to .[6]
Rolling stock used: Class 599 Metrocar