The new Tyne and Wear Metro trains, temporarily pulled from service due to leaking air conditioning units, are now all back in operation. During last weekend’s heatwave, passengers reported water pouring from the ceilings of several Stadler-built trains.
00:01The new Tynanwea Metro trains that were once again temporarily pulled from service, this time due to leaking air conditioning units, are now all back in operation.
00:11During last weekend's heatwave, passengers reported water pouring from the ceilings of several of the Stadler-built trains.
00:18Nexus, the Metro operator, confirmed that up to four trains were withdrawn, but returned to service within hours.
00:25The issue caused delays of up to 40 minutes, particularly affecting those heading to major events like the hop-ins, causing frustrations among passengers.
00:36Cooler weather has allowed the fleet to resume normal operations, but the root cause of the leak is still under investigation.
00:44Nexus said the trains had been tested at 30 degrees Celsius during their development without issues.
00:49However, this is the second significant problem with the £362m fleet.
00:55Following an earlier incident where a train store has opened on the wrong side, public transport campaigners, the North East Transport Users Group, have raised concerns about the rush to replace the aged 1980s trains, and questioned whether issues are being overlooked.
01:11However, Nexus have said that's not the case.
01:14In a joint statement, Nexus Managing Director Cathy Massarella and Stadler CEO Lucius Jerrig apologised and assured customers that affected trains were cleaned, dried and returned promptly.
01:28They added that monitoring measures are in place while the cause is identified and resolved.
01:33The phased rollout continues, with both Nexus and Stadler calling it the most complex project in Metro's history, with the current phase being the most challenging of any fleet transition project.
01:441
01:46has been able to understand the use of escreve interrogations.
