Tyneside Electric

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A Class 416 train in British Railways blue/grey livery - 12 of these EMUs operated on the Tyneside Electrics during its last years

The Tyneside Electric refers to the suburban railways on Tyneside that were electrified by the North Eastern Railway from 1904 onwards and formed one of the earliest suburban electric networks. They were electrified using the Third Rail system but converted to diesel operation in the 1960s when the lineside traction equipment became life expired ^[1]. In the late 1970s and early 1980s much of the system was converted to form the Tyne & Wear Metro.

[edit] Routes

The lines covered were the North Tyneside Loop from Newcastle via Wallsend, North Shields, Whitley Bay and South Gosforth back to Newcastle; the main line from Newcastle to Benton (providing a short cut to Whitley Bay) and the riverside loop from Newcastle to North Shields via Walker,

Electrification of the South Tyneside Line from Newcastle via Heworth to South Shields was announced by the London and North Eastern Railway in 1935 and electric services began in 1938.

[edit] Rolling stock

[edit] North Eastern Railway

Much of the North Eastern Railway stock was built by British Thomson-Houston in 1904. In 1918 there was a serious fire at Walker Gate carriage sheds and 34 cars were destroyed. Thirty-four new cars were built between 1920 and 1922 to replace these.

[edit] London and North Eastern Railway

Main article: LNER electric units

The NER stock remained in service with the LNER from 1923. In 1937-8 the 1920 "replacement stock" was transferred to the newly-electrified South Tyneside line and was replaced on the North Tyneside lines by new articulated units from Metropolitan Cammell.

[edit] British Railways

Main article: British Rail Class 416

The LNER stock remained in service with the British Railways (BR) from 1948. In 1955, BR introduced new stock on the South Tyneside line. This was based on the Southern Region 2EPB stock with minor detail differences. When the South Tyneside line was de-electrified in 1963, the 1955 stock was transferred to the Southern Region.

[edit] References

[edit] Sources

• Hoole, K. The North Eastern Electrics, Oakwood Press, 1961

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