Way back in the age of the train
ALREADY BANNED WHEN STOPPED
WE’VE delved into the Sunday Sun archive to recall a selection of North East railway stations – large and small.
Some locations are still with us, some have gone, while others are today the sites of stations on the Tyne and Wear Metro.
By 1914, at the outbreak of the Great War, the railway was the main form of transport for passengers and freight in Britain.
There were around 4,000 stations and 23,000 miles of track sprawling the length and breadth of the country.
But the years after the Great War saw the rapid rise of the bus and, later, the car – and a subsequent fall in the number of railway passengers, leading to the closure of some stations. In 1963, Dr Richard Beeching advised the Government that at least one quarter of the country’s railway stations should be axed because they were uneconomical.
The cuts marked the end of the line for a swathe of Britain’s smaller stations, including many across the North East.
Today there are around 2,500 stations and 10,000 miles of track covering the UK.
Our main image shows the region’s finest railway station and, thankfully, it’s very much still in operation. Taken in February 1958, it shows national newspapers being unloaded at Newcastle Central Station.
Last year marked the station’s 170th anniversary. It was officially opened on August 29, 1850, by a 31-year-old Queen Victoria.
It was a high-profile affair, with the railway companies selling spots to view the royal party from in special stands erected inside the station.
The Central Station’s development and opening went hand in hand with that of the High Level Bridge, which was completed a year earlier. The project as a whole was complicated by the geography of the city, and the need to bridge the steep Tyne gorge between Newcastle and Gateshead.
But now, trains could run directly between Newcastle and London.
The station, on Neville Street, is the gateway to Tyneside and the first glimpse of our region for many visitors. It is also one of six Grade I-listed stations in the UK, and one of the country’s “cathedral” stations. With its neoclassical frontage and triple-curved roof, the Central Station remains one of the finest buildings in the city.
Indeed, architect John Dobson’s techniques were later adopted at other stations around the UK.
A BANNED driver has avoided jail after being found drunk behind the wheel for the fourth time.
Richard Dalton already had eight motoring offences on his record, including three for driving with excess alcohol, and was serving a seven-year disqualification when he once again got into his car.
But police soon spotted the 37-year-old driving “poorly” and without a seat belt along Canning Street, in Benwell, Newcastle, and pulled him over.
Checks revealed that Dalton was a banned driver and he was arrested after also failing a roadside breath test.
Now, Dalton, of Well Road, in Aberdeen, Scotland, has been disqualified for 48 months after he pleaded guilty to one count each of driving with excess alcohol, driving while disqualified and driving with no insurance.
North Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard that Dalton had been due in the dock last month but couldn’t get to the North East as he was banned from the roads.
The case was adjourned but he appeared in court on Wednesday.
Leanne Duffy, prosecuting, said: “On December 15 2020, a police officer witnessed a blue Ford Fiesta driving on Canning Street.
“He was not wearing a seat belt and was driving in a poor standard.
“Officers spoke to the driver and he was clearly intoxicated. Checks were conducted and it showed the defendant was a disqualified driver and had no insurance.”
Dalton was arrested and later gave a reading of 85 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath when the legal limit is just 35.
The court was told that the road menace had 19 offences on his record, including eight involving motoring.
Miss Duffy said three of those offences were drink driving, dating from 2003, 2004 and 2015, with the latter seeing him banned from the roads for seven years.
Amy Lamb, mitigating, said Dalton had been talking to his child on the phone and had decided to drive in order to get his charger when his battery died.
“He can’t actually believe he’s done it,” Miss Lamb added. “It was an entirely stupid decision and he apologises.
“He drinks rarely but he has identified that when he does drink, he makes stupid decisions.”
Dalton was given an 18-month community order, with 150 hours of unpaid work, and must pay £85 costs and a £95 victim surcharge.
He drinks rarely but he has identified that when he does drink, he makes stupid decisions
DEFENCE SOLICITOR