The 1965-6 reconstruction gave Sunderland a dispiritingly bland entrance building, reflecting the new British Rail ‘Corporate Identity’ philosophy, and what Fawcett accurately describes as a ‘joyless dungeon’ at platform level, artificially lit beneath a steel and concrete deck with shops at ground level. Remarkably for a town of its size (over 200,000) by 1965 Sunderland had only one railway route passing through it - Newcastle to Middlebrough – and all passenger trains could be handled on the two faces of the eastern island platform. The western platform was retained for parcels traffic. The new entrance building on the south side of the station opened on 4 November 1965.
In 2002 Metro services from Pelaw were extended through Sunderland and onward to South Hylton, largely on the alignment of the former line from Leamside and Penshaw. The unique situation was in place for both light and heavy rail to share the same tracks and call at the same platforms; Northern Rail trains between Newcastle and Middlesbrough use the northern end of the island platforms’ two faces, while Metro trains use the southern end. Some ‘restoration’ of the station building was attempted, but at platform level the station remained one of the most unlovely in the country – rivalled by Birmingham New Street, similarly deprived of daylight.
Nexus, the operator of the Tyne and Wear Metro, announced a £7 million refurbishment platform areas at Sunderland in 2006 to be funded by the Department for Transport in a scheme in which the money ‘saved’ by reducing a subsidised local Northern Trains service in favour of Metro was converted into a lump sum for capital investment. Nexus does not own or manage the station - it is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern - but wanted to invest as the major operator. Refurbishment began in January 2008 and was completed in July 2010. Nexus appointed Sadler Brown Architecture to develop the design, led by Arup Consulting Engineers which incorporated the work of three artists, Jason Bruges Studio, Julian Germain and Morag Morrison.
Jason Bruges Studio has created a 460ft light wall with individual LED units containing an animated display. Julian Germain is providing a sequence of 41 photographs of everyday items ‘lost’ in a Metro environment, while Morag Morrison is designing coloured glass wall panels for buildings along the island platform.The project also saw an entirely new floor, ceilings and lighting, substantial improvements to existing walls and significant reorganisation of buildings and waiting areas on the platforms.
