Jesmond is an underground station on the Tyne and Wear Metro, serving Jesmond in Newcastle upon Tyne. The station joined the network in August 1980, following the opening of the line between Haymarket and Tynemouth – the first stage of the network to open. The station was designed by Faulkner-Brown Hendy Watkinson Stonor and L. J. Couves & Partners. It was chosen by Simon Jenkins as one of the top 100 stations in Britain, being described as a "miniature homage to the modernist architect Mies van der Rohe". In the treatment of the roof detailing and glass external walls, there are some similarities to Mies' New National Gallery in Berlin. The Garden Front art installation, was commissioned for the station in 1978, and was designed by sculptor, Raf Fulcher. It is located in the enclosed space to the rear of the building. The station also houses the Abstract Murals installation, created by Simon Butler. This artwork was commissioned in 1983, and consists of vitreous enamel panels with brightly coloured geometric shapes. The station was used by 654,624 passengers in 2017–18, making it the thirteenth-most-used station on the network.
History
The former Jesmond station was built in June 1864, to a design by John Dobson. The station opened under the Blyth and Tyne Railway, which ran from Blyth to Newcastle New Bridge Street. The was line later linked to Newcastle Central, and became part of the North Tyneside Loop. The station closed in January 1978, to allow for the construction of the Tyne and WearMetro network, using a new alignment in a tunnel, bypassing the original station. The new station was built to the north west of the former, re-opening in August 1980. The main station building is still present, and is now The Carriage public house. The building is grade II listed and is the last remaining station of the former Blyth and Tyne Railway. A mockup of a signal box was built in the early 1990s, on the site of the former station master's house, forming part of a restaurant, along with an old railway carriage. A line still runs through the former station linking, the Tyne and Wear Metro line to the north of Jesmond, with the line to the west of Manors.
Facilities
Step-free access is available at all stations across the Tyne and Wear Metro network, with two lifts providing step-free access to platforms at Jesmond. The station is equipped with ticket machines, seating, next train information displays, timetable posters, and an emergency help point on both platforms. Ticket machines are able to accept payment with credit and debit card, notes and coins. The station is fitted with automatic ticket barriers, which were installed at 13 stations across the network during the early 2010s, as well as smartcard validators, which feature at all stations. The station houses a newsagent's shop and coffee kiosk. There is no dedicated car parking available at this station. There is the provision for cycle parking, with 5 cycle pods available for use.
Service and frequency
Jesmond is served by the, which operates between South Hylton and Airport, with an end-to-end journey time of 64 minutes, and the, which operates between South Shields and St. James, with an end-to-end journey time of 83 minutes. Services from platform 1 operate towards South Hylton and South Shields, with the first trains departing at 05:12 and 05:05. Services from platform 2 operate towards Airport and St. James via Whitley Bay, with the first trains departing at 05:59 and 05:50. Trains run frequently across the network, at intervals of up to every 12 minutes, and every 15 minutes, with the last trains departing at around midnight. Combined, trains run at intervals of up to every 6 minutes, and every 7–8 minutes between Pelaw and South Gosforth. Additional trains run during morning and evening peak hours between Pelaw and Regent Centre or Monkseaton. This provides a train up to every 3 minutes through the station at peak times. Journey times from Jesmond are:
