Green landmark designs for doomed flyover

Designs reimagining a condemned concrete carriageway as a green landmark have been unveiled.

Newcastle University's Farrell Centre invited ideas for how the Gateshead flyover, which was closed six months ago due to structural concerns and is set to be demolished, could be repurposed.

The entries, now on display at the centre, imagine it as a lush green space lined with trees and gardens, which could also become a walking and cycling link.

It is hoped the designs could spark a conversation about the future of Tyneside's wider infrastructure – including the Central Motorway.

Suggestions for how the flyover and the space underneath it could be used by the Gateshead community include allotments, markets, play areas, repair shops, performance spaces, and sports facilities such as basketball courts and football pitches.

Farrell Centre director Owen Hopkins told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "The council has decided what it wants to do and that is their role, but what we wanted to do was to use this as an opportunity for a counterpoint.

"We are not necessarily trying to influence or change any decisions that have been made, it is about showing the possibilities for when other situations like this inevitably occur.

"There are a good amount of flyovers and ageing bits of concrete infrastructure... we feel that there are opportunities to creatively reimagine those."

Anneliese Hutchinson, strategic director for economy, innovation and growth at the council, said that while the structure's condition meant it had to be demolished rather than repaired or repurposed, the council welcomed the competition's "imaginative approach".

She added: "Many of the ideas put forward are not actually reliant on the flyover remaining in place.

"So there might be potential to integrate some of these ideas into our wider regeneration plans for the town centre and nearby neighbourhoods."

Follow BBC Newcastle on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.