The Government has announced an £8.6m bailout for the struggling Tyne and Wear Metro.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has agreed 12 weeks of funding for the Metro system - £715,000 per week - to enable key routes to remain open for key workers during the coronavirus lockdown.
Since the measures to combat Covid-19 were introduced, passenger numbers on the Metro have dropped by more than 90% and the network has been losing close to £1 million every week.
Nexus bosses previously said they needed £10 million just to keep services running until July.
The Department for Transport's announcement forms part of a nearly £30 million package to keep light rail services running across England.
Tyne and Wear’s council leaders and MPs have complained for weeks that the Government had bailed out private rail and bus companies, while not offering any help for the Metro.
Trains are still running to help NHS staff and other key workers get around, but to a reduced timetable of one every 24 minutes on each line.
The Government says the cash boost will enable key routes to remain open for people travelling to hospitals, supermarkets or those who cannot work from home, including frontline NHS staff.
A DfT spokesperson said that light rail operators across the country have seen a sharp decline in passenger numbers and suffered significant losses in income.
They said that "following consultations with the industry, a bespoke package of support has been agreed for Nexus to ensure essential services can continue".
This funding, over a period of three months, will be backdated from mid-March.
Transport Secretary and Minister for the Northern Powerhouse Grant Shapps said: “The best way to stop the spread of the virus and protect the NHS is to stay at home – but protecting key transport services is vital to ensure essential travel can take place.
“In Newcastle, Sunderland and right across Tyne and Wear, for almost fifty miles, the Metro is the undercurrent that keeps people moving. It plays a crucial role in getting NHS staff and emergency services to work - and it is only right that we offer operators support during this time of national crisis.
“This package of support will help ensure light rail services continue to operate at this difficult time.”
This funding is part of a wider package of support for light rail systems in England announced by the Transport Secretary today, worth almost £30 million, which will see critical routes in the West Midlands, Nottingham, Manchester and Sheffield continue to run.
It comes as the Government recently announced a funding boost of up to £397 million for bus services with new funding of up to £167 million to be paid over 12 weeks under the new Covid-19 Bus Services Support Grant.
Last month, the Government took emergency measures to support and sustain necessary rail services as operators face significant drops in their income.
The Department temporarily suspended normal franchise agreements and transferred all revenue and cost risk to the government for a limited period, and is offering free refunds to anyone holding an advance ticket to ensure passengers are not out of pocket.
