Newcastle Metro Map 2026: Lines, Tickets & Fares

Newcastle Metro Map: Key Facts at a Glance

• Two lines are all you need to learn: Yellow runs from St James to South Shields and Green from Airport to South Hylton, together serving 60 stations.
• Since April 2026 an adult Pop PAYG journey starts at GBP 2.20 (approx. USD 2.97) for one Metro zone, and a whole day of Metro-only travel is capped at no more than GBP 5.00 (approx. USD 6.74) across three zones.
• The airport sits on the network: regular daytime Green Line trains reach Monument in 24 minutes and Central Station in 26 minutes.
• You can usually turn up and go: trains typically run every 12 minutes per line or branch by day, every 15 minutes in the evening and every 30 minutes early on Sunday.
• Plan the late evening ahead, because the Metro does not operate 24 hours and the last Airport departure continuing through central Newcastle is 23:07 daily.

Current Newcastle Metro disruption information

Regent Centre and Airport: Works include weekday evening closures from 20 July 2026 and a closure between South Gosforth and Airport from 15 to 23 August 2026. Temporary replacement buses are not Metro services.

Check current service status and review the planned-work details before travelling.

The Tyne and Wear Metro links central Newcastle with Gateshead, Sunderland, the North Tyneside coast and Newcastle International Airport. The embedded main map is the primary guide for ordinary journeys; use the fare-zone map only when comparing tickets and the Metro and local rail map for Northumberland Line connections.

Map symbols also mark bus, ferry and rail connections. These are not part of the 60-station Metro network.

The two-line Tyne and Wear Metro carries visitors through Newcastle and Gateshead towards Sunderland or the North Tyneside coast. It includes a station beside an international airport terminal, while its city-centre tunnels connect with surface and reused railway sections.

The Tyne and Wear Metro opened to passengers in August 1980. Nexus operates it as a public light-rail rapid-transit system with above-ground and underground sections.

At 31 March 2025, the network covered 48.5 route miles (about 78 km) and 60 stops. In the year ending March 2025, it recorded 32.2 million passenger journeys, 4.9% more than the previous year.

Metro reused local railway alignments from its opening, and the 2002 Sunderland extension shares national-rail infrastructure before continuing to the Metro-only section toward South Hylton. That hybrid engineering does not change the system’s official Metro identity.

The Tyne and Wear Metro’s 60-station operating total excludes buses, Shields Ferry, Northern local rail and proposed projects. The Washington route therefore does not belong on the current Newcastle Metro map or in the 60-station count.

Yellow and Green Lines on the Tyne and Wear Metro

• Yellow Line (yellow): St James ↔ South Shields. It follows the North Tyneside coastal loop, passes Monument on both sides of that loop and serves Whitley Bay before continuing through the shared central corridor toward South Shields.
• Green Line (green): Airport ↔ South Hylton. It runs from Newcastle International Airport through the central corridor and Gateshead to Sunderland and South Hylton. A regular daytime trip from Sunderland to Central Station takes 29 minutes.

How to Read the Newcastle Metro Map

The Yellow and Green lines both serve Haymarket, Monument, Central Station and Gateshead. They diverge north of South Gosforth and south of Pelaw. Monument has four platforms for interchange between its north-south and east-west platform groups.

Follow the line colour to the destination, check the terminus shown on the train, then confirm any change at a shared central station. Use the separate fare-zone map to count the zones crossed before buying a ticket.

To use the Newcastle Metro map, match each destination with its line and station, then check fare zones and live service information.

In central Newcastle, Haymarket suits the Great North Museum, Monument serves Grey Street, Central Station connects with mainline trains, and St James sits below the football stadium.

Central Station Metro is below and within the Newcastle railway station complex, so no street transfer to another Metro stop is required. Life Science Centre is a short walk away.

Newcastle International Airport, code NCL, has its own Green Line terminus named Airport beside the terminal.

Regular daytime Green Line journeys from Airport take 24 minutes to Monument and 26 minutes to Central Station.

All stations have access by a level route, ramp or lift, but platform gaps and step dimensions vary. Travellers who need assistance can review current access information and book help at least four hours ahead on 0191 203 3666.

1. Choose the main map for an ordinary trip, or the zone map when comparing fares.
2. Find the destination station, line colour and number of fare zones crossed.
3. Check the station-specific timetable and live status before departure.
4. Buy the correct paper ticket, use a physical Pop card or use an Android virtual Pop card.
5. Touch your Pop card in and out at gates or validators on every journey. Keep a paper ticket for gates and inspection.

The destinations table pairs major visitor sights with the correct line and station. BALTIC is not directly served by Metro; check the current journey planner for the onward trip from Gateshead.

Check the platform direction before boarding, especially at Monument, where the Yellow Line serves different platform groups around its loop. Passengers requiring assistance should arrange help in advance and allow extra time for station-specific platform gaps.

A physical Pop PAYG card is free with a required starting balance of GBP 5.00 (approx. USD 6.74).

Top up the physical Pop card online or at a station machine, then touch in and out for every trip, including when a gate is open.

Paper singles are valid for 90 minutes from purchase for one non-return journey. Paper day tickets allow unlimited same-day Metro travel within the purchased zones. Keep the ticket for barriers and inspections.

Android users can create a separate virtual Pop PAYG card in Google Wallet. Nexus offers the Pop App for Android and iPhone via Google Play and the App Store.

For passengers aged 16 to 21, current eligibility details are available from the official Pop Blue page.

The Metro does not operate 24 hours. First and last trains vary by station, direction, day and final destination.

The timetable lists the first Airport departures towards Newcastle at 05:38 on weekdays, 05:37 on Saturday and 06:14 on Sunday. The last Airport departure continuing through central Newcastle is 23:07 daily; later listed trains terminate at Regent Centre.

Services typically run about every 12 minutes per line or branch on Monday to Saturday daytimes and every 15 minutes in the evening. Early Sunday service is about every 30 minutes per branch before frequencies increase to about every 15 minutes.

Alternating Yellow and Green trains serve the shared central corridor about every six minutes during the day. This interval does not apply to every station or branch. Use Timetable information for the selected stop.

Replacement buses run for specific engineering closures. They are temporary bus services, not Metro lines or a standing night service.

The Tyne and Wear Metro is changing to its new train fleet. All 46 Stadler Class 555 trains had been delivered by 21 February 2026. By 2 June 2026, almost all daily services used the new trains.

All 46 are intended to be available for passenger service by the end of 2026. The last guaranteed Class 599 passenger runs were scheduled for 22 to 26 June, although occasional later appearances remained possible.

Metro to Washington remains a planned 13 km extension from Pelaw through Washington to South Hylton. Its proposed stations are Follingsby, Washington North and Washington South, with details still undecided.

The proposed extension could open by 2033, but the outline business case and final funding are not yet complete.

The current network began carrying passengers between Haymarket and North Shields in August 1980. The original network was completed in 1984, Airport opened in 1991, and passenger service to Sunderland and South Hylton began on 31 March 2002.

Fun Fact: Grey’s Monument stood on foundations only eight feet deep. Before tunnelling beneath it, Metro engineers installed special piles to strengthen the monument’s plinth.

The links below lead to English map guides for other city networks.

Continue with the London Underground Map, Amsterdam Metro Map, Paris Metro Map, Hamburg Metro Map or Berlin Metro Map. Browse the overview of all metro maps for every English city guide.