In the last few hours, Gareth Dennis has uploaded a short segment of his interesting Railnatter 322 about the ECML between Newcastle and Edinburgh, if you’d like to view the full episode, drop back to our previous blog post covering it here. The short segment from Newcastle Central Station to Cramlington can be viewed below.Continue reading “Railnatter 322: Newcastle Central to Cramlington, and NO to 1500v DC to Ashington?”
Category Archives: Northumberland Coast Loop
Northumberland Coast Loop Update, September 2026
On 1st September 2026, I emailed a number of local politicians and other local campaign groups with regards to the Northumberland Coast Loop; which would be a new rail route connecting Newcastle Upon Tyne to Edinburgh via North Tyneside and South East Northumberland. This email was circulated as a group to: Mr A. Ford, NEPTUG,Continue reading “Northumberland Coast Loop Update, September 2026”
Railnatter No. 319: The Tyne and Wear Metro, inc Washington extension and Metro to Morpeth?
On Wednesday 2nd September 2026, episode 319 of the long-running Railnatter series by rail engineer Gareth Dennis aired on YouTube (also available where you get your podcasts). As ever, it was a very interesting episode, covering a brief history of the system from its origins as the Tyneside electrics running on third rail (a liveContinue reading “Railnatter No. 319: The Tyne and Wear Metro, inc Washington extension and Metro to Morpeth?”
The Ancient Kingdom Railtour 22nd August 2026
In just a few minutes from the time of posting on Saturday 22nd August 2026, ‘The Ancient Kingdom’ railtour, operated by UK Railtours will depart from London King’s Cross towards Berwick-Upon-Tweed, calling to pick-up passengers at Potters Bar, Stevenage, Peterborough, and Doncaster, and setting down at Alnmouth for Alnwick is due to run, and fromContinue reading “The Ancient Kingdom Railtour 22nd August 2026”
Fantastic fifteen hundred and one!
Please visit the petition page to see the latest update on reaching 1501 signatures. Shortly I’ll be writing to local councillors, MP’s and other organisations such as Railfuture to seek their support for the route given the now substantial and growing support for the Newcastle – Northumberland Park – Blyth Bebside – Pegswood – AlnmouthContinue reading “Fantastic fifteen hundred and one!”
‘The Tynesider’ Railtour 2026: ‘Tangmere’ on the Bedlington Balloon Loop. West from Bedlington before the Newbiggin extension?
On Saturday 4th July 2026, ‘The Tynesider’ railtour, operated by The Railway Touring Company and West Coast Railways, ran north from London to Newcastle; with the train continuing to Morpeth to take advantage of the ‘balloon loop’ formed by the East Coast Main Line (ECML) and the former Blyth and Tyne lines to turn theContinue reading “‘The Tynesider’ Railtour 2026: ‘Tangmere’ on the Bedlington Balloon Loop. West from Bedlington before the Newbiggin extension?”
Northumberland Branch of NEPTUG Meeting: 1st July 2026
Another great meeting of the Northumberland Branch tonight, with much discussion on buses, rail services (ECML, Northumberland Line, and Tyne Valley Line), and also of cycling integration with rail too. Membership is FREE, with the chance to have a real say in better buses, trains, and more! Why not sign up now? We aim toContinue reading “Northumberland Branch of NEPTUG Meeting: 1st July 2026”
Car dependent tourism a risk of ruining Northumberland?
A recent article from The Northern Echo sets our the case for a visit to Craster ‘beating’ Bamburgh, though both are listed as beautiful settings on the Northumberland Coast. However, the reason behind Bamburgh being beaten is perhaps a warning sign of what Northumberland risks; if we depend on car based tourism like the LakeContinue reading “Car dependent tourism a risk of ruining Northumberland?”
Ian Lavery MP calls for the Newbiggin extension; can the Northumberland Coast Loop come soon too?
A recent article in The Chronicle details Ian Lavery MP, asking for a debate on the expansion of the hugely popular Northumberland Line from Ashington to Newbiggin by the Sea. In the article, it quotes Mr Lavery MP with one and a half million journeys having been taken on the line since it opened onContinue reading “Ian Lavery MP calls for the Newbiggin extension; can the Northumberland Coast Loop come soon too?”
Cllr Hunter, why not Berwick to Blyth by rail, not road for young people to access education, training, and employment?
A recent article by Cllr Hunter of Berwick, who also owns a road haulage business called DHH Contracts, has joined many of the voices calling for dualling the A1. In the article, she says that the lack of dual carriageway leads to vehicles being delayed, increasing costs such as driver hours and fuel, especially ifContinue reading “Cllr Hunter, why not Berwick to Blyth by rail, not road for young people to access education, training, and employment?”
