The Tyne and Wear Metro is a vital part of commuter, leisure and tourist travel for many people in North East England. It is the busiest urban rail system in the UK outside London, carrying around 40 million passengers a year.
Although the Metro has always stood for innovation, after nearly four decades its train fleet will soon need to be replaced.
Nexus, the public body which owns and manages Metro, is completing a detailed business case for a £540 million investment in a new train fleet and the infrastructure to support it, building on its current programme to renew track, technology and other key assets.
A new train fleet will be around for decades to come and Nexus wants to ensure its design reflects the aspirations and needs of people across the community, and throughout their lives.
It has partnered with Open Lab at Newcastle University to work with people across Tyne and Wear to understand their needs and develop proposals for future Metrocars. These insights will then be used as designs for new trains are developed with suppliers in 2017.
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