New Metro train's doors 'opened on to tracks'
Ethan ForsterA photograph has emerged showing the doors of a new Metro train opened on the wrong side, leaving a drop on to the tracks below.
The train was stationary when a passenger took the image at Simonside station in South Tyneside at about 16:00 BST on 21 April.
The same day, the Tyne and Wear Metro operator Nexus pulled its five new trains from service "as a precaution" due to a problem linked to how to doors open and close.
Nexus said doors on the new trains "operate differently" to the old ones and it had "identified a solution" and was working to implement it with manufacturer Stadler.
Passenger Ethan Forster said the door failure happened at 16:00 GMT.
He saw another commuter had pressed the button to exit the train but it did not immediately open the correct door.
"That's when I noticed that the door had opened on the other side and I snapped the photo," he said.
"The door then closed along with every other door and was not open at any point while the train was moving."
He said he did not see if any other door had opened on the incorrect side.
Mr Forster said he immediately reported the issue through the help box at his station and was told the information would be passed on to the train team.
Three-year delay
The service's five new trains were suspended last week, in the latest in a line of setbacks to beset the roll-out of its new fleet.
The Metro's existing trains have been running since the network opened more than 40 years ago and have become increasingly failure-prone.
The first of a new set of trains made it into service in December 2024, with Nexus blaming delays on such things as testing the trains, driver training and rising inflation.
Forty-six trains, which were initially scheduled for operation by the end of 2023, are expected to be in use by the end of 2026, but so far only five have entered service.
Nexus said it did not expect the temporary suspension to affect the new trains' rollout and it would provide more updates later this week.