Only about four decades overdue, finally getting this line back. Too late for the lost generations who grew up in these dying towns, but definitely a ray of hope for the future. At least one childhood friend of mine who didn't leave can expect to cut an hour and a half each day off his commute to work and back. That works out as an extra 16 days' worth of personal time per year. Not a bad prospect for a small TSW DLC either to be honest. DTG already have the 158 and a deal with Northern. Newcastle station would have further use for potential future ECML routes to Edinburgh or York, and you could have some AI LNER 801 services running in and out of it. Some of these playable services could even layer into a possible future Tyne and Wear Metro route as AI near Northumberland Park. Although, if they were to consider a pre-1964 BR version of the line, they should hit me up, I spent MONTHS of my childhood going over the microfilm in the local library and know intimately what the area used to look like.
