CLASS 555 No. 555003 completed early morning test runs to South Shields on August 14.
It was the first appearance of a Class 555 unit on trial on the route. A total of 46 of the five-car units are being built by Stadler in Switzerland to replace the current Class 599 ‘Metrocar’trains.
August also saw classmate No. 555004 moved to the Nexus Learning Centre (located at the end of the branch, a few hundred yards north of South Shields Interchange) for staff training.
With a team of engineers on board, No. 555003 has covered various parts of the network on overnight trials since becoming the first of the class to venture out onto the system under its own power in May. In July, it ran to Sunderland and South Hylton for the first time.