Tyne and Wear Rail Freight Questionnaire

A Rail Freight Partner group has been set up by the Partnership to include a number of rail industry organisations as stakeholders. The purpose of the group is to seek an understanding of opportunities for modal shift from road to rail. To help this process we have produced a short questionaire which can be completed in around 10-12 minutes.

See the Rail Freight home page for further information

Next Partnership Meeting

The next meeting of the Tyne and Wear Freight Partnership will be held on Wednesday 7th March 2012, from 10.30-12.30, in Committee Room C, South Shields Town Hall, Westoe Road, South Shields, NE33 2RL, 0191 427 1717. more info

Important Changes to Tyne Tunnel Traffic Controls

Both Tyne vehicle tunnels will become operational this month, will more than double capacity at the crossing. When both tunnels are in use, the new road tunnel (currently operating bi-directionally) will become one way, offering two lanes for southbound traffic. The original, refurbished road tunnel will offer two lanes for northbound traffic.

The curvature of the northbound tunnel means that lane two (the right hand lane) will have height restrictions introduced. Lane two is a CAR ONLY LANE and will not be suitable for use by vehicles above 4.0 metres high. Vehicles other than cars will be required to use lane one, which has a maximum height of 5.1 metres.

Download further information TT2 from here.

Getting Freight Back on the Rails

The Tyne and Wear Freight Partnership’s Freight on Rail Working Group is holding a meeting on Wednesday 28 September to discuss the Partnership’s plans to encourage freight on rail, and to review current progress in promoting railfreight. The meeting will be held in the Armstrong Room of Newcastle Civic Centre, beginning at 11.00, and a buffet lunch will be provided. If you have an interest in this topic and would like to attend the meeting, please contact Peter Hayes of Aecom by email Peter.Hayes@aecom.com to book your place.

September's Partnership Meeting

At the Partnership meeting in September, there were several informative presentations.

Paul Fenwick gave a presentation on the New Tyne Crossing, which you can download here. Photos with kind permission of Bouygues Travaux Publics.

Gary Walker of Clipper Logistics gave a presentation on Newcastle's Freight Consolidation Centre, which you can download here.

Finally, Peter Hayes of Aecom gave a presentation on Best Practice and Fuel Saving, which you can download here.

The minutes of the meeting are available here.

Welcome to the August newsletter for the Tyne and Wear Freight Partnership

Welcome to this, the Partnership’s first newsletter of the 2011-12 year. Although we have made some small organisational changes to the way the Partnership isrun for this year, our goal remains the same, to promote sustainable freight transport in Tyne and Wear.

The Freight Partnership is operated under the remit of the Tyne and Wear Local Transport Plan (LTP), with technical support and operator liaison provided by Aecom.

New LTP for Tyne and Wear

The third Tyne and Wear LTP took effect on 1 April 2011. LTP3 explains how we intend to improve our transport system, covering all the forms of transport that are used to move people and goods around the region. It comprises a Strategy Document setting out our policies for the next 10 years (including our proposals for freight), with an associated three-year Delivery Plan. Further Delivery Plans will be produced from 2014 onwards.

You can view the new LTP here .

2011 / 2012 Action Plan

The tasks to be undertaken by the Partnership in 2011 / 12 are listed on the website here .

They comprise a programme of measures that build on previous initiatives (such as updating our suite of freight destination maps) and also incorporate a number of new innovations, such as our Fleet Recognition proposals.

Fleet Recognition

Fleet Recognition Schemes are free, voluntary schemes that are designed to encourage good practice in operational and environmental performance for operators of goods vehicles. In some cases, they may also include bus and coach fleets.

Individual vehicles are assessed and the overall fleet performance rated, with help and advice for operators wishing to gain a higher rating. There are schemes operating in South Yorkshire, London and Devon and we are assessing the merits of the various schemes (as well as international examples) to consider if a Tyne and Wear scheme would be feasible and attract operator support.

June Meeting

The June meeting of the Partnership was well-attended and included a fascinating and thought-provoking presentation by Keith Ross of Network Rail about bridge strikes and the dangers they pose for both road and rail traffic.

You can download Keith's presentation here.



Those bridges most often or most recently struck in Network Rail’s LNE region are as follows:

• A1058 Fisher Lane, Cramlington
• Albert Hill, Darlington
• Albert Road, Middlesbrough
• Old Fold Road, Felling
• A67 Parkgate, Darlington
• Lobley Hill Road,Gateshead
• Water Street, Elswick
• Sheepfold North, St Peters
• Oxbridge Lane, Stockton
• Chester Low Road, Plawsworth
• Neasham Road, Darlington
• Parkside Road, Darlington
• Boundary Road, Middlesbrough
• A67 Oak Tree, Dinsdale
• Wellington Road, Dunston
• A173 Guisborough Road, Brotton
• Durham Station, Durham
• Forest Lane, Yarm
• Cross Lane, Gateshead

Tyne Tunnel News

The TT2 project continues to progress and vehicles are now currently using the new tunnel that was built as part of the New Tyne Crossing project. The second phase of the project, which is currently underway, involves the full refurbishment of the original vehicle tunnel built in 1967. This is expected to be completed in December 2011 when both vehicle tunnels will be open to traffic.



Councillor David Wood, Chair of the Tyne and Wear Integrated Transport Authority (the New Tyne Crossing promoter) makes his address during a mid-river meeting of civic dignitaries in July 2010

A Partnership newsflash gave details of the temporary traffic management measures being implemented in Jarrow during July and August 2011 as works towards completion of the project are carried

Website and Online Forum

The Partnership website continues to be well-used. The most popular pages are:

• Restriction map
• Freight map
• Destination maps
• Interactive destination maps
• Lorry Parking
• News
• Events
• Knowledge networks

Newcastle Freight Consolidation Centre

Clipper Logistics working in partnership with Your Homes Newcastle has created a Freight Consolidation Centre to serve the North East. The Freight Consolidation Centre, known as The hub, is located in Newcastle to provide retailer support to Eldon Square, the Metro Centre and Newcastle City Centre in the first instance.

The benefits of the hub will be two fold; retailers can increase store selling space, save on staffing costs, and benefit from flexible delivery patterns as well as packaging removal and recycling. The hub can also offer pre-retailing services and off site storage facilities.


The local economy and environment also benefits as the act of freight consolidation minimises vehicle journeys and mileage therefore reducing emissions and congestion; leading to improved air quality, a balanced approach to road users providing a positive environment for business and, ultimately, a vibrant local economy.


To find out more email thehub@clippergroup.co.uk.

Get Involved

If you would like to get involved with the Partnership you are welcome to come along to the next meeting which is scheduled for Wednesday 7 September 2011 in the Leazes Room at Newcastle Civic Centre. Reception is at 17:30, with a buffet tea provided, with the main meeting starting at 18:00.

Future quarterly meetings are scheduled for the following dates:

• Wednesday 7 December 2011
• Wednesday7 March 2012

Temporary road works as New Tyne Crossing builds new features for Jarrow

Temporary traffic management measures will be implemented in Jarrow during July and August 2011 as works towards completion of the New Tyne Crossing are carried out.

On Sunday 24th July Howard Street Bridge (the section of the A185 that crosses the A19 above the Tyne Tunnel) will be closed to traffic in both directions between 7am and 7pm. A diversion via Priory Road, Chaytor Street, Ellison Place and Ellison Street will be in place. Pedestrian routes along A185 Howard Street will be maintained at all times during these works.

This temporary road closure is necessary to enable reinforced beams to be placed above the original Tyne vehicle Tunnel, replacing the 1967-built sun visor that was demolished in May this year.

From Monday 25th July for a period of approximately four weeks temporary traffic lights will be installed on Chaytor Street in Jarrow to enable a new roundabout to be built. The roundabout will be located at the junction of Ferry Street, Chaytor Street, and the road leading to the Tyne Pedestrian and Cyclist Tunnels.

While the works take place it will also be necessary to close part of Ferry Street (the section of road adjacent to the ventilation chimney serving the original vehicle tunnel). There will be no through route for traffic along Ferry Street to Chaytor Street. Access from Ferry Street to Shakespeare Street, South Back Shakespeare Street, Spenser Street and Milton Street will also be closed during this period. Motorists will be asked to use alternative routes via Staple Road, High Street, Monkton Terrace, Howard Street, Ellison Street, Ellison Place and Chaytor Street.

Pedestrian movements will be maintained along all routes during these works and the Tyne Tunnel will remain open at all times.

A diagram indicating which routes are affected is available to download here

TT2 Limited and Bouygues Travaux Publics UK, the main design and build contractor for the project, would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused by these works, which will bring new features to Jarrow as part of the landscape masterplan.

Preventing Bridge Strikes

At the Partnership meeting in June, Keith Ross of Network Rail gave a presentation on Preventing Bridges Strikes. You can download the presentation here

Freight Exchange Trial Conclusions

It is evident that Freight Exchanges continue to play an important role in freight operations and that there is a wealth of options and opportunities for operators to exploit. It was also clear that the majority of operators tend to have already investigated and used freight exchanges to some extent and that once good working relationships had been formed that the exchanges have been an invaluable part of their daily operating environment. It is simply the matter of finding the most suitable exchange for their operations. Importantly an operator must carefully take into account the cost of on-going subscription against the profits made from loads subcontracted and collected as only one of the operators taking part in the trial is planning to continue to use the system. For full report click here.

Find out more about Freight Exchanges at our Freight Exchange page here.

The Award winning Tyne and Wear Freight Partnership, which is managed by AECOM on behalf of the Tyne and Wear Local Transport Plan Team, held a successful European Freight Conference this week (22 February 2011), which was designed to provide a platform to discuss best practice and innovations in urban freight transportation.

Held at Newcastle Civic Centre, the Conference, funded with assistance from the EU’s CIVITAS programme, was attended by transport operators, industry experts, trade associations and other stakeholders from the UK and Europe. The day commenced with a keynote speech from the Chair of the European Parliament Transport Committee, Brian Simpson MEP, and was followed by speakers from across Europe sharing their best practice experiences in freight planning. The afternoon comprised of three workshop sessions where delegates explored the challenges surrounding Access Restrictions, Consolidation Centres and Routing and Mapping. As the conference closed delegates had the choice of attending organised site visits to either Smith Electric Vehicles or the John Lewis Newcastle Warehouse.

John Bourn, of the Tyne and Wear Local Transport Plan Team, said: ‘The conference provided the perfect environment for transport experts to share their ideas and to begin to develop innovative solutions to freight challenges across Europe. All in all, it was a successful and productive day.’

Summary Documents

Summary Documents can be downloaded from the following links:

• Conference Summary
• Conference Feedback Analysis

Presentations

Presentations can be downloaded from the following links:

• Urban Freight: Myths, Good Practices, Best practices
• Freight Operator Recognition Scheme
• Urban Goods In Bremen
• Electric Vehicles
• Local Freight Network- City of Gothenburg