Hundreds of people gathered at Regent Centre in Newcastle on Friday afternoon to wave off the last 599 train of the original Tyne and Wear Metro fleet, as passengers from around the world joined in the joyous atmosphere of its final journey.
Final Journey Draws Global Crowd
The old 599 metro fleet terminated at Regent Centre at 5pm before pulling into the depot for the last time. Hundreds of passengers on board chanted "Metro, Metro, Metro" and clapped as the train pulled into each stop for the final time.
Throughout the week, Nexus had been operating special farewell services for the old trains, which have travelled half a billion kilometres and carried 1.7 billion customers over 46 years of service.
Emotional Tributes from Driver
Metro driver Richard Turner, who drove the last service, described the journey as emotional. "It's been a legacy. It's been a very chaotic, interesting day. I've met a lot of people from all around the world actually," he said.
Turner added: "I spoke to a guy and his son at Tynemouth who were from New York, he was a New York Sub driver. I've spoken to somebody from Canada. So it's been a mixed bag of people and mixed emotions."
"It has been an honour to drive the last 599 train but sadly I've got to come back to work next week to drive the 555," he joked, noting that passengers were "full of beans and excitement."
Community Celebration
On board, Turner paid tribute to drivers past and celebrated memories made along the route. Announcing on the metro, he said: "For years it's been carrying countless passengers and become a familiar part of our community."
Passengers responded with "Three cheers for the Tyne and Wear Metro!" as the train pulled into Regent Centre, where more cheers erupted as crowds filmed the last 599 pulling away.
