Go North East: Latest News & Discussion

Go North East: Latest News & Discussion - September 2017

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Michael

19,158

23 Sep 2017, 10:07 am #341

SK65 PWV has returned on loan to Go North East, it will be on loan to Chester-Le-Street so a double decker can move to Crook as a temporary replacement for 6304 while it's off the road:

http://www.northeastbuses.co.uk/fleet/it...peratorF=2&fleetnoF=9101

Only 25 Citaro's to go for refurbishment... seems the ending is in sight....

Edited 23 Sep 2017, 10:31 am by Michael.

Ooo Friend, Bus Friend.

citaro5284

3,232

23 Sep 2017, 10:26 am #342

(23 Sep 2017, 10:07 am)Michael SK65 PWV has returned on loan to Go North East, it will be on loan to Chester-Le-Street so a double decker can move to Crook as a temporary replacement for 6304 while it's off the road:
http://www.northeastbuses.co.uk/fleet/it...peratorF=2&fleetnoF=910

Link does not appear to be working - but I think if 6304 if off the road for a while and it is down to either Wrights or Merc, they should be providing a replacement double deck.

Michael

19,158

23 Sep 2017, 10:32 am #343

(23 Sep 2017, 10:26 am)citaro5284 Link does not appear to be working - but I think if 6304 if off the road for a while and it is down to either Wrights or Merc, they should be providing a replacement double deck.

Sorted.

Having previously been used by Go North East in May 2016 for a demonstration trial to evaluate suitability of this vehicle type on minibus and midibus routes in the company's network, it has now been acquired by the company again. It has been provided by Wrightbus as a courtesy vehicle whilst Crook-based Wright StreetDeck 6304 (NK16 BXD) is off the road undergoing mechanical work, and as such will be used by Chester-le-Street Depot to release a double-deck vehicle to Crook.

Ooo Friend, Bus Friend.

L469 YVK

3,548

23 Sep 2017, 11:04 am #344

(23 Sep 2017, 10:26 am)citaro5284 Link does not appear to be working - but I think if 6304 if off the road for a while and it is down to either Wrights or Merc, they should be providing a replacement double deck.

Could Wrightbus not provide GNE with the Streetdeck demo that Arriva have been using recently?

Michael

19,158

23 Sep 2017, 11:58 am #345

(16 Sep 2017, 4:46 pm)Michael 6314 spotted at Heysham docks today:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/nsf323alis...otostream/

Photo by Alistair

Although spotted last week, 6314 is still at Heysham docks....

https://www.flickr.com/photos/nsf323alis...otostream/

Photo by Alistair

Ooo Friend, Bus Friend.

Malarkey

6,062

23 Sep 2017, 12:23 pm #346

(23 Sep 2017, 10:26 am)citaro5284 Link does not appear to be working - but I think if 6304 if off the road for a while and it is down to either Wrights or Merc, they should be providing a replacement double deck.

Could they not of reinstated one of the recently withdrawn B7 Presidents to cover 6304 at Crook, or alternatively sent one of the former TTX B9's there on loan, at least then passengers on the X21 would have a vehicle of similar specification?

Michael

19,158

24 Sep 2017, 10:10 am #347

When will the Orange Citaro's start to get branded?

Ooo Friend, Bus Friend.

Citaro5326

235

24 Sep 2017, 10:23 am #348

5301 is saltmeadows ready to go to hexham seen it yesterday

Michael

19,158

24 Sep 2017, 12:02 pm #349

Due to a parade in Sunderland City Centre the main part of Park Lane Interchange is currently closed and all services are using the ABC side

Edit:

Now reopened.

(24 Sep 2017, 10:23 am)Citaro5326 5301 is saltmeadows ready to go to hexham seen it yesterday

Will it replace 4943 or has that already moved?, if so which Scania?

Edited 24 Sep 2017, 12:13 pm by Michael.

Ooo Friend, Bus Friend.

EL1TE

372

24 Sep 2017, 12:16 pm #350

(24 Sep 2017, 12:02 pm)Michael Due to a parade in Sunderland City Centre the main part of Park Lane Interchange is currently closed and all services are using the ABC side

Edit:

Now reopened.

Will it replace 4943 or has that already moved?, if so which Scania?

I think 4943 has already moved as I saw it at Gateshead Interchange yesterday evening.

My flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/140920997@N03/

big mac

430

24 Sep 2017, 2:40 pm #351

Anyone know how the X5 is doing since the full route was introduced on a Sunday?

Sent from my 5051X using Tapatalk

Ds1197

506

24 Sep 2017, 3:56 pm #352

(24 Sep 2017, 2:40 pm)big mac Anyone know how the X5 is doing since the full route was introduced on a Sunday?

Sent from my 5051X using Tapatalk

4 people including me last Sunday me and one other stared on till Sunderland I got on at peterlee

Jordan2104

133

24 Sep 2017, 5:04 pm #353

If the 1 gets the hybrid deckers as speculated will they get NSAs

Dan

Site Administrator

18,113

24 Sep 2017, 5:22 pm #354

As I was on holiday last week, I missed quite a few posts. Just gone back through now...

(06 Sep 2017, 9:18 am)S830OFT Which boards on the 20 does Chester Le Street operate?

Chester-le-Street operate one journey on service 20 on weekdays only: the 07:10am journey from South Shields, arriving into Durham at 08:53am. The bus then operates services 13/X25, so should be an L94.

(06 Sep 2017, 4:09 pm)Citaro5326 Yesterday i went on 5332 on X10 and driver said he got told by leading driver it might be transferring to deptford , if so id imagine 5331 will join it for the 9 ?
Also what next stop screens are programmed into 6099 and 6100 other than 56

Not a lot at the moment. Probably just the 56 and X1.

Long term, it'll be any service which is operated by a bus with TFT monitors for Next Stop Announcements, but that's a long way off yet.

(11 Sep 2017, 9:58 am)JP6004 Got to say the pix of the B5s dont do it justice. Looks a lot better in real life

Used the X9/X10 for the first time yesterday (in public service). A number of folks commented on how eye-catching the bus was with all of the colours. One woman got very excited about the tables inside too: she took 'selfies' with her young daughter and then proceeded to ring someone up and tell them all about it.

The table designs may just be a gimmick rather than something which would actually be used by passengers, but these gimmicks are what get people talking! Word of mouth is free promotion!

(11 Sep 2017, 7:04 pm)stagecoachbusdepot Well from Jimmi’s video, either the display or the audio is wrong. From about 40 secs the display says Next Stop is Tees Barrage, at about 5min someone gets off, the display announces Tees Barrage, but the audio saying “This is Tees Barrage” doesn’t kick in until the bus is moving away from the stop, which seems a bit late.

(11 Sep 2017, 7:18 pm)S813 FVK I don't think it is wrong and is probably a case of 1 person getting off the bus takes less time than it does for that particular announcement to play. It certainly isn't specific to the X9/X10.

The audio announcement is set to play as soon as the doors have opened - sadly on all buses (even on other operators' buses), the door signal sometimes takes a while to actually register that the doors are open.

This cannot be controlled by the bus operators, and it is for bus manufacturers to improve their door signal speed.

Indeed, I noticed when I travelled on a bus yesterday that it took significantly longer to do the 'this is' announcement than usual, but sadly not something that can be controlled within the programme. I believe Hanover are developing an option to do the announcement on 'Doors Opening' rather than 'Doors Open' given the problems multiple operators have had with this.

As S813 FVK says, not specific to the X9/X10.

(12 Sep 2017, 7:12 am)Tom 6036 on 11-transfer or loan to Percy Main

(12 Sep 2017, 9:27 am)Jordan2104 They got it yesterday which went on a scholars. Possibly a loan due to shortages?

Bit late now, but Percy Main were operating a large number of extra services (mainly for the Cruise Ships).

6036 was one of a number which were transferred across following the end of the Metro Replacement contract - this in turn releases single deckers from their ordinary routes to operate the Cruise Ships services (which use single-decks).

In this instance, I suspect one of the Blue Arrows had to be used, once all of the fleet liveried single-decks had been allocated.

(12 Sep 2017, 3:51 pm)omnicity4659 I can see it has WiFi, USB and Tables, it says it twice. It runs direct via the A19, it's great value and its "contactless" (please use "contactless payments" or "contactless accepted" next time?!). But where does the bus go? Yes there's a full read blind, but if you're sat behind it and it says "Dalton Park then Middlesbrough", then where do you try and get on...?

With reference to 'contactless' - I don't think this is an issue at all.

From personal experience, in any sort of retail situation, I would ask "Is it contactless?" or "Do you do contactless?" when making a payment. Language evolves, and I think 'contactless' is a good example of this. Everyone understands the context of the situation and knows this word refers to a payment method.

I notice Arriva North East are starting to roll out a "contactless" vinyl on the first nearside window closest to the doors, on their buses. I've struggled to find a clear photo to demonstrate this, but it is visible on this photograph.

(12 Sep 2017, 6:11 pm)Malarkey Would've been the vehicle they had taken the machine from as 6012 was supposed to be withdrawn following Metro Replacements, but went to Percy Main to assist additional PVR due to roadworks in June, no further updates on the NEB Fleetlist to say whether it has been withdrawn or not.

It has indeed been withdrawn.

News has been slightly updated since - 6009 was the bus which transferred to Percy Main for the additional PVR due to the roadworks, while 6012 was in fact the bus which temporarily replaced 3891 pending the entry into service of 6147. 6012 was retained over the summer after 6147 entered service due to the extra services in operation of the summer, but no longer required now.

(13 Sep 2017, 5:32 pm)S813 FVK Have 3885 and 3887 been withdrawn? They have both broken down within the last week (3885 seemed to have a gearbox issue) and I have only seen 3886/9 recently.

3885 and 3888 withdrawn - the former for repair cost avoidance (with 6032 taking its place in the fleet at Stanley) and the latter due to the loss of Miscellaneous Works contracts.

3888 notably sold to Ensign, too. Should be collected on Monday.

(13 Sep 2017, 6:33 pm)Michael According to the Go North East fleet news, 4898 has been withdrawn, so it looks like it might not make to Deptford after all.

News, that it was intended to transfer to Deptford, can be found here: http://www.northeastbuses.co.uk/fleet/it...peratorF=2&fleetnoF=4898

4898 now reinstated, but unlikely that 4898/99 will transfer to Deptford now, with L94s in the fleet at Deptford taking their place.

(14 Sep 2017, 12:08 pm)RBZ 5459 640 is away for repairs.

Not repairs - just longevity testing by Optare:
http://northeastbuses.co.uk/fleet/item.php?operatorF=2&fleetnoF=9094

(14 Sep 2017, 4:25 pm)Citaro5326 Why has there being a angel on X1A past 2 days is it allocated to this peak working or something ?

The 17:00 trip on the X1A service is now operated by Chester-le-Street. Should be a Volvo B7TL though in reality is likely to turn out any double-deck that is available in the depot at half past 3 on that day! One to keep an eye on, for those interested in the wrong brand allocations.

(15 Sep 2017, 10:11 am)omnicity4659 6308 doesn't have a visual next stop display upstairs. Although, I'm very impressed with the service offered!

The announcements re diversions and attractions are great.

Yes, lots of positive feedback about the announcements so far. Most of the negative feedback has been about the low volume - this should have now been rectified, with the volume being increased higher than the volume setting used on the StreetDecks at Crook.

The visual LED display is planned to be retrofitted by Wrightbus at a later date once all of the buses have been delivered. It wasn't fitted during build due to the TFT monitor used for CCTV images being installed where the LED visual display would usually be mounted.

The LED visual display is planned to be retrofitted above the staircase, behind the front seats on the upper saloon.

(16 Sep 2017, 7:27 pm)S813 FVK Then they are forgiven.

Phew!

Yes - the Family Day Ticket is only ever ordinarily reduced from £13 to £10 for the duration of the summer on-bus, but it looks like it has been reduced to £10 permanently now (matching the M-Ticket version) in line with the introduction of the Big Days Out campaign. Excellent news, I'm sure everyone will agree.

(17 Sep 2017, 12:45 pm)Olympian3521 [quote pid='206934' dateline='1505590021']
Seen in Consett this morning was Castles express Streetdeck 6305.
It was on the bypass and headed for Castleside so was probably on the way to Crook

That has been a fairly frequent sighting on a Sunday morning over the summer months, for those of you out and about early enough! If any faults develop, or early signs of a fault developing arise, with the Stanley-based vehicles used on the Kynren Park & Ride, they are replaced by Crook-based vehicles for the night.

The engineers at Stanley then swap the buses back over the following morning, completing any necessary work to get the Stanley-based bus working again.

(23 Sep 2017, 11:04 am)L469 YVK Could Wrightbus not provide GNE with the Streetdeck demo that Arriva have been using recently?

Sadly not on this occasion.

The StreetDeck being used by Arriva at the moment has already been committed to other operators. It is planned for this vehicle to be used at Go North East late next month, however.

Jordan2104

133

24 Sep 2017, 5:53 pm #355

Dan
The StreetDeck being used by Arriva at the moment has already been committed to other operators. It is planned for this vehicle to be used at Go North East late next month, however.

What routes?

Malarkey

6,062

24 Sep 2017, 6:16 pm #356

(24 Sep 2017, 5:53 pm)Jordan2104 Dan
The StreetDeck being used by Arriva at the moment has already been committed to other operators. It is planned for this vehicle to be used at Go North East late next month, however.

What routes?

Crook to cover for 6304 on the X21 which is off the road for Mechanical Work, alternatively I would say Chester for the 21 as that has been rumoured to be getting Streetdecks.

L469 YVK

3,548

24 Sep 2017, 6:31 pm #357

(24 Sep 2017, 6:16 pm)Malarkey Crook to cover for 6304 on the X21 which is off the road for Mechanical Work, alternatively I would say Chester for the 21 as that has been rumoured to be getting Streetdecks.

If the Angel was to get Streetdecks, would GNE be better off instead of ordering spares, ordering an extra 4x for the Red Kites then transferring 6118-21 to Chester Le Street / Crook as spare vehicles?

Would GNE get more BSOG payments (considering that spares are only really needed during Mondays to Saturdays on the Angel / Castles Express) using 2x Streetdecks as spares on the Angel or using 4x Streetdecks on the Red Kites plus any extra misc workings that normally take place?

Michael

19,158

24 Sep 2017, 6:46 pm #358

(24 Sep 2017, 6:16 pm)Malarkey Crook to cover for 6304 on the X21 which is off the road for Mechanical Work, alternatively I would say Chester for the 21 as that has been rumoured to be getting Streetdecks.

Could be a bit late for it to go to Crook, as its not arriving till next Month. 6304 could be back by then.

I would say the 21, hopefully the X1 too as they have 5/6 year old B9's... Maybe the 56?

(24 Sep 2017, 6:31 pm)L469 YVK If the Angel was to get Streetdecks, would GNE be better off instead of ordering spares, ordering an extra 4x for the Red Kites then transferring 6118-21 to Chester Le Street / Crook as spare vehicles?

Would GNE get more BSOG payments (considering that spares are only really needed during Mondays to Saturdays on the Angel / Castles Express) using 2x Streetdecks as spares on the Angel or using 4x Streetdecks on the Red Kites plus any extra misc workings that normally take place?

No, they should order spares for the Angel, they have with other routes, even though not all.

Edited 24 Sep 2017, 6:48 pm by Michael.

Ooo Friend, Bus Friend.

Rapidsnap

2,377

24 Sep 2017, 7:19 pm #359

I was rather hoping they would order some MetroDeckers.

Also is there any details for the location of the Park and Ride for the Golf Masters event at Close House near Heddon on the Wall next weekend.

Edited 24 Sep 2017, 7:23 pm by Rapidsnap.

Please feel free to visit my Flickr page - https://www.flickr.com/photos/gjm-photogenic/
Who needs heroes anyway? Villians have more fun.

L469 YVK

3,548

24 Sep 2017, 7:38 pm #360

(24 Sep 2017, 6:46 pm)Michael Could be a bit late for it to go to Crook, as its not arriving till next Month. 6304 could be back by then.

I would say the 21, hopefully the X1 too as they have 5/6 year old B9's... Maybe the 56?

No, they should order spares for the Angel, they have with other routes, even though not all.

What I mean is that with the Angel being mostly a 'hop on hop off' service and if it was to get new 17x new Streetdecks, would it not make more sense to order 4x Streetdecks on top of this for the 45/46/47 then do the following with the 4x Red Kite B9TLS:

- 6118/19/20 to Chester Le Street as spares for the Angel
- 6121 to Crook as spare for the Castles Express

The only thing that would perhaps need to be fitted on these would be next stop announcements and they'd be good to go. Plus, bearing in mind that whilst the spares would only be sent out if there was a shortage of Steetdecks on the Angel, 4x Streetdecks on the 45/46/47 plus any other misc workings including Sundays would be out and about more often; saving GNE fuel costs as well as allowing GNE to claim more enhanced BSOG payments too plus passengers on the decker boards would benefit from the same features that the Streetlites have incuding NSA's, E-Leather Seating and Plug Sockets. Plus Chester Le Street would benefit from 3x spare vehicles instead of 2x which can come in quite handy at times.

Additionally not forgetting that 6118-21 came as dealer stock and with less mileage under their belts, GNE could easily sell them for more money should they ever become surplus to requirements.

Edited 24 Sep 2017, 7:43 pm by L469 YVK.