Newport, Isle of Wight Newport, Isle of Wight Newport is a civil parish and the county town of the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of England. The civil parish had a population of 23,957 at the time of the 2001 census, which rose to 25,496 at the 2011 census. The town lies slightly to the north of the centre of the Island. It has a quay at the head of the navigable section of the River Medina, which flows northward to Cowes and the Solent. Mousterian remains, featuring tools made by Neanderthals at least 40,000 years ago, were found at
Transport on the Isle of Wight Transport on the Isle of Wight The Island Line is the one railway left on the island. It runs some 8½ miles from Ryde Pier Head to Shanklin, down the eastern side of the island via Brading and Sandown. It was opened by the Isle of Wight Railway in 1864, and between 1996 and 2007 was run by the smallest train operating company on the National Rail network. Services are now provided by Island Line Trains, part of the South West Trains franchise, using electric trains which are old London Underground rolling stock. The island also has a steam-operated heritage