Getting Around, Sunderland Travel, Transport and Car Rental
(Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England, UK)
Although many visitors to Sunderland choose to travel around the city centre on foot, others with less time rely on public transport to quickly reach their chosen destinations. With plenty of buses and fast underground light-rail Metro trains, the public transport on offer in Sunderland is very comprehensive.
Reasonably priced taxis are also easy to come by in Sunderland and suit those looking to travel short distances, between attractions on to the Bridges Shopping Centre. Taxi transport in the city is quite distinctive and taxis can either be hailed on the street or found at various ranks, such as those located outside of the Central Railway Station and the Park Lane Interchange. Nearby in Newcastle, an international ferry terminal is to be found at North Shields and provides direct travel to both IJmuiden in the
Netherlands (close to
Amsterdam) and also
Gothenburg in
Sweden, with ferry transport here being operated by DFDS Seaways.
Airports / Arriving by Air
Sunderland is serviced by two main airports.
Newcastle International Airport (NCL) is the largest and stands in the Prestwick area, just over 35 km / 22 miles to the north-west and easily reached by direct Metro train transport. Durham Tees Valley Airport (MME) is considerably smaller and lies some 58 km / 36 miles to the north. Both of these facilities offer flights to prominent cities across Europe, in countries such as
Austria,
Belgium,
Denmark,
France,
Germany,
Greece,
Italy,
Portugal,
Spain and
Turkey. Newcastle Airport also features flights to
Dubai, in the
United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Car Rental
The road network surrounding Sunderland is quite extensive and includes the A1(M), which heads southwards, passing Washington, Chester Le Street, Durham, Cornforth, Newton Aycliffe and Darlington. Those intending to reach the northerly side of the city where the Stadium of Light is located will need to take the A19, while if you wish to travel to the beaches of Roker and Seaburn from the city centre, then the A1018 is the most direct route available.
Buses and Coaches
Bus transport in Sunderland is generally the cheapest way to reach the cities of Durham and Newcastle, with buses travelling between these destinations all through the day. The bus station in the city is named the Park Lane Interchange and resides off Park Lane and next to Mary Street and Cowan Terrace, on the south-westerly side of the city. The Park Lane Interchange is actually one of England's busiest, outside of
London, and is served mainly by Stagecoach cross-city buses, which regularly stop on Green Terrace, along Holmeside and at Vine Place.
Each district of Sunderland is well supported by the bus network, while further afield, National Express and Megabus coaches travel to cities such as
Birmingham,
Leeds,
Liverpool, London and
Sheffield.
Trains
Standing in the very city centre, off Brougham Street and Waterloo Place, the Sunderland Central Station is owned by Network Rail, although is actually managed by Northern Rail. The city's train station is well served by daily trains and features frequent travel connections to London's Kings Cross Station (via
York), as well as Carlisle, Durham, the Metro Centre shopping centre in Gateshead, Hexham, Liverpool, Middlesborough and
Newcastle upon Tyne. A thorough refurbishment of the platforms and facilities has just been completed, including the addition of an escalator. Local Metro transport is also available at this station.
Metro
The Tyne and Wear Metro is an efficient underground train network and opened in the city as recently as 2002, where it provides one of the fastest and most direct ways to reach Newcastle, which by Metro is just under 30 minutes away. There are currently four Metro train stations located within the city, at the Park Lane Interchange, next to the university's City Campus on Chester Road, close to the Stadium of Light and at the Sunderland Central railway station, next to the Bridges Shopping Centre.
Information about public
transport in Newcastle.
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