Newcastle Central Station taxi rank move on hold amid complaints

Taxis pull into the current rank after first queuing in the nearby Orchard Street tunnel

Council bosses have pledged not to relocate Newcastle Central Station's taxi rank until fears over noise and fumes are dealt with.

A £4m redesign of the railway station will see queuing cabs moved from a tunnel at Orchard Street, which will be pedestrianised under the plans.

The vehicles are due to be moved to what is currently a short-stay car park at the front of the station.

However, nearby residents warn it would affect nearby air quality.

Orchard Street has previously been named the most polluted road in Newcastle.

'Will suffer 24/7'

Peter Howard, who lives on Clayton Street West, said fumes and noise generated by a taxi rank would be "too much" even for residents used to city-centre life.

The 63-year-old added: "They seem to think that the air quality for people who walk through the tunnel for maybe five minutes a day is more important than the air and noise pollution for the hundreds who live next to Bewick Street and will suffer 24/7."

Mr Howard suggested the council should look at alternative locations for the rank, such as near the new walkway entrance to Central Station being created opposite the Centre for Life.

Officials insist no final decisions have been made about how the new rank will work and accept the long queue of cabs in the tunnel cannot be shifted to Bewick Street, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

While work is due to start this month on the latest phase of the station's revamp, the local authority said taxis would not move until a "properly designed and tested solution" was found.

The council said it understood "the concerns of residents" and was "exploring various options".

It added it would consult with residents and taxi drivers but that any alternative location would have to be on station land.