Former travel centre becomes a pop-up Metro museum

The project at Monument Metro station in Newcastle has breathed new life into the vacant unit and would give people the chance to learn more about how the Metro system became a reality.  

The exhibit, which opened today (Friday 3 July), features fascinating archive photography, including Metro’s construction phase and its Royal opening in 1981.  

It celebrates the role that has been played by the original Metro train fleet, which completed its final guaranteed runs in customer service on Friday 26 June.  

The project was the brainchild of Nexus Stakeholder Relations Officer Jamie Robson.  

He said: “Our new pop-up museum celebrates the amazing history of the Tyne and Wear Metro.  

“The until was the ideal location for the exhibit. It has helped to breathe new life into the facility.  

“The displays show the most iconic archive images across the five decades that we’ve had a metro system, from when it was built, to its many Royal visits.  

“It’s a fascinating trip down memory lane and is a reminder how significant it was for our region to get an underground light rail system, which, at the time, was the first of its kind outside of London.  

“We are looking forward to our customers popping into the museum over the summer to have a look around. Monument is the busiest station on the Metro system so we are expecting it to be popular.  

“It also comes at a time when we’ve just had a week of special commemorative runs in service of the old Class 599 Metro fleet. The exhibit is a fantastic way to look back at their amazing life of service.”  

The pop-up museum will be open on Friday 3 July from 10:30 am to 1pm,and Saturday, 4 July, 11am to 2pm.  

It will also be open Thursday 9 July 10:30am to 1.30pm; Friday 10 July 10.30am to 1.30pm; Saturday 11 July, 11am – 2pm.  

 Further opening hours will be published soon on the Nexus website and via our social media channels.