Closure of major road for work to reopen railway

A new pedestrian and cycle bridge is being built at Blyth Bebside

Commuters are being warned of closures on a major route as part of construction work to reopen a passenger railway line.

The A189 in Blyth, Northumberland will be closed overnight on 12 July and from 20:00 BST on 3 August until 06:00 BST on 5 August.

During the work a new pedestrian and cycle bridge will be built at Blyth Bebside, ahead of the reopening of the Northumberland Line, between Ashington and Newcastle.

In a letter to residents officials said some disruption was "unavoidable".

The Northumberland Line will run between Ashington and Newcastle

The A189 will be fully closed between the Three Horse Shoes and the Kitty Brewster Roundabouts for preparatory work on 12 July, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The same stretch will also be closed over part of the first weekend in August.

The letter to residents also said that construction work at the station was "progressing well" with track and signalling upgrades almost completed.

Wojciech Ploszaj, Conservative councillor for Kitty Brewster, said: “While inconvenient, it is extremely important to have this footbridge in place to allow people to safely cross the Spine Road and reach the new station.”

Three stations including at Ashington are due to open in the summer

The Northumberland Line project will bring passenger rail back to south east Northumberland for the first time since the 1960s.

Three stations at Ashington, Newsham and Seaton Delaval are due to open in the summer, although no date has yet been set.

Three other stations at Bedlington, Bebside and Northumberland Park are due to open next year.