Tyneside’s road, rail and Metro story
NEW BOOK RECALLS THE 1980S
IN October 1982, Paul Williams arrived in Newcastle to attend university. One of his first acts in the city was to buy a good camera.
Over the next four years he took countless photographs of the buses and trains of the region, as well as the recently opened Tyne and Wear Metro system.
In the process, he created a fascinating time capsule, capturing not only Tyneside’s transport infrastructure in the mid-1980s but also the region itself.
Now, Paul tells the story of road, rail and Metro transport on Tyneside during that era in a new book, published by Amberley.
The author, who grew up In Manchester, said: “Yellow or red buses, blue trains and yellow Metros were everyday city sights that are now gone.”
There were also photographs taken on trips to surrounding areas, capturing the rich variety of the region’s transport system.
Paul added: “In nearly four decades that have elapsed, so much has changed. The buses and trains are different, the Metro has evolved and even the city of Newcastle itself – the backdrop to many of the photos – has changed in so many ways.
“My book, Tyneside Road and Rail Transport, is a nostalgic trip down memory lane for anyone who remembers the city and its transport from the age of Thatcher, the Miners’ Strike and Kevin Keegan at St James’s Park.”
The book’s 180 photographs will spark memories for anyone who recalls the 1980s in our region.
The sight of buses trundling down Newcastle’s Northumberland Street, for example, has been consigned to history as has the bus station on Worswick Street which served passengers between 1929 and 1996.
We also see the trains, stations and purpose-built bridges of the Metro system - which began running in August 1980 - in its early years.
Meanwhile, the regular trains that populated the mainline and local rail lines of Tyneside during that era are also well-represented.
More then four decades on, Paul says: “The place is still wonderful today and I still feel excitement and nostalgia when I plan an all-too-rare trip back.
“The buses and Metros are no longer yellow and white, and trains are no longer blue, but in my mind that’s how they’ll stay.” ■■Tyneside Road and Rail Services, by Paul Williams, on sale now. Amberley Publishing. £14.99.