Following on from the Tyneside’s double deck bridge upgrade in July, Network Rail has completed another job in the Newcastle area.

For the first time in years, all the three clocks that adorn the front of Newcastle station are now all working again, and are all synchronised.

The three clocks which were installed in 1893 had suffered water damage to the time keeping mechanisms which gradually saw each one fail to keep time before stopping completely.

Despite being out of action for so many years, it took specialist clockmakers, Smiths of Derby and Network Rail, just three nights to get all three clocks back up and running.

At a cost of £21,000, funding for the work and replacement parts came through a joint venture between Network Rail and the Railway Heritage Trust.

Each face had to be cleaned, and the mechanisms repaired or replaced where needed, before brighter LED backlights were installed behind the faces.

To get to the hands, an elevated platform was used to access them from the front at 16 meters up on the side of the station building.

At 4:45 am on Thursday, 24 October, all three faces were adjusted to the right time, and they began working together again, prepared to serve the passengers of Tyneside‘s largest station.

“Our customers take immense pride and care for the rich heritage of the station in Newcastle, and we know how popular these clocks are. Time is incredibly important for the railway and for our customers, and it’s great to know that such key parts of our station’s appearance are now running, again, like clockwork.”

Carl Howarth, LNER’s head of property