Northern has appointed a new Regional Director for the North East.

Jason Wade, currently the train operating company’s Head of Retail Operations, will be replacing Kerry Peters who has moved to manage Northern’s services in Yorkshire, Humberside and the East Midlands.

Wade will undergo a phased transition into his new role in order to give Northern time to recruit a replacement for his old role. He will take on responsibility for all Northern services operating from hubs at Newcastle, Sunderland and Middlesbrough, extending as far as Carlisle in Cumbria, Chathill in Northumberland, Bishop Auckland in County Durham and Saltburn and Whitby in North Yorkshire.

Starting his career on British Rail, Wade, who comes from York, was recruited as a graduate trainee at Regional Railways North East.

He has recently marked his 30th year in the rail industry and is the North East chair of the Chartered Institution of Railway Operators. Previous roles held at Northern include station management, control, safety, performance, operations, customer and commercial.

Tricia Williams, chief operating officer at Northern, said: “Jason has been an integral part of our executive leadership team for the last 14 years and I can’t think of a better person to take Kerry’s work forward and head-up our operations in the North East.  He brings with him a wealth of experience and a can-do attitude and I know he will champion the needs of our customers in the region.”

Jason Wade added: “I am absolutely delighted and proud to be appointed to this role and I look forward to leading the Northern team in the North East.

“I believe strongly in the power of collaboration and I look forward to working with stakeholders to ensure we continue to deliver for our customers.”