What is a Gateway?
A gateway improvement is a highways project aimed at improving the entrance to an area. They aim to enhance the image and quality of the public spaces as you enter a town.
Three gateway locations were identified in the North Shields Masterplan as needing improvements to better define the town, provide better transport infrastructure and enhancing the public space. Each gateway aims to address different transport issues while improving the look and feel of the town’s entrances.
Gateway 1
Work on the gateway into North Shields at Stephenson Street / Albion Road is now complete, creating a more welcoming entrance to the town.
The new layout offers a safer route for cyclists and pedestrians to the town centre and Fish Quay with upgraded traffic signals, footpaths and crossing points.
The grassed area outside the Magistrates’ Court will be landscaped and a piece of public art will be installed in 2025.
Gateway 2
Gateway 2 will provide a visual link between the Fish Quay and the coastal active travel routes to the east of North Shields. The road around Fiddlers Green will become one-way to improve safety when crossing, retain parking, and maintain servicing access to the Quay.
The scheme will include:
- Better connections between North Shields Promenade and the Fish Quay for pedestrians and cyclists
- A new raised crossing/traffic calming measure between Fiddlers Green and the Fish Quay footpath
- Cycle provision along the southern side to separate it from pedestrians, with improved crossings at both ends
- Fiddlers Green will be landscaped with a wide footpath through the centre, seating, an art installation and an area that could be used for small-scale events
Gateway 3
Gateway 3 is the five-arm roundabout on the A187 that connects Prudhoe Street to Trinity Terrace.
Works to make this gateway easier and safer to use are now complete using funding from the government’s Highways Maintenance Challenge Fund. Improvements to this key route into the town centre include:
- Installing a new circular central island to help the roundabout function more effectively
- Relocating and installing safer and more accessible pedestrian and cyclist crossing points
- Extending the pedestrian guardrail
- Improving drainage by installing new gullies
- Resurfacing the roundabout and its arms
There are future plans to further enhance this gateway through planting areas and an art installation.
