(27 Jun 2025, 1:53 am)deanmachine wrote [ -> ]GNEs B9s like to overheat when on long journeys at high speed.
GNE are doing a disservice to the X10 & X21.
Total PVR of both services is 12x (or 15x if X9 brought back).
A new batch of deckers properly rotated between the two routes and looked after, would give 7 years of service. Then maybe cascade them onto something like the 27 or 16/16A/X5/X15 for the next 7 years and repeat.
If they're not going to sort out suitable vehicles for the route, I'd bet a few quid the fed up passengers start looking for an alternative.
Whether it's one not turning up, turning up late, or stuck in a lay-by on the A19, there's only so much that passengers can take.
(27 Jun 2025, 5:52 pm)Andreos1 wrote [ -> ]If they're not going to sort out suitable vehicles for the route, I'd bet a few quid the fed up passengers start looking for an alternative.
Whether it's one not turning up, turning up late, or stuck in a lay-by on the A19, there's only so much that passengers can take.
GNE need to forget about using eldon square on the X10, then coaches could be used. Most of the DD coaches with PSVAR have the wheelchair ramp on the rear door.
(27 Jun 2025, 7:19 pm)ASX_Terranova wrote [ -> ]GNE need to forget about using eldon square on the X10, then coaches could be used. Most of the DD coaches with PSVAR have the wheelchair ramp on the rear door.
Double Decker coaches are a no go as they have horrendous steps to get on board for normal passengers. Normal coaches can use Eldon Square anyway and there's products on the market nowadays that have a low floor at the front anyway (Plaxton Panther LE)
(27 Jun 2025, 7:19 pm)ASX_Terranova wrote [ -> ]GNE need to forget about using eldon square on the X10, then coaches could be used. Most of the DD coaches with PSVAR have the wheelchair ramp on the rear door.
Quite the opposite ... GNE and every bus operator pays NEXUS about 80-90p per bus to enter that bus station...
If there is an issue then we need Nexus to fix this to make buses suitable to use stands not drive buses away from a Bus Station
The whole point of a Bus Station is for Buses to meet up.
Worst case scenario is to move bus stations move it from Eldon Square to Haymarket and use the first stand as a bus drives in.
Could GNE not:
- Buy Plaxton Panther LE's? - Eldon Square issue resolved.
- Re-instate the X9 - still more capacity than just an hourly X10.
- Peak time extras between Newcastle and Peterlee......and matchday duplicates between Newcastle and Peterlee using normal buses.
I know there'd be ad-hoc occasions where 53 seats might not be enough, but surely there are trends and data available for GNE to act accordingly with hot spares and duplicates.
(29 Jun 2025, 8:14 am)L469 YVK wrote [ -> ]Could GNE not:
- Buy Plaxton Panther LE's? - Eldon Square issue resolved.
- Re-instate the X9 - still more capacity than just an hourly X10.
- Peak time extras between Newcastle and Peterlee......and matchday duplicates between Newcastle and Peterlee using normal buses.
I know there'd be ad-hoc occasions where 53 seats might not be enough, but surely there are trends and data available for GNE to act accordingly with hot spares and duplicates.
The caetano boavista also has front wheelchair boarding. I would also consider the same for the X21 if possible.
https://www.busandcoachcentre.co.uk/info...c-for-sale
(29 Jun 2025, 2:11 pm)ASX_Terranova wrote [ -> ]The caetano boavista also has front wheelchair boarding. I would also consider the same for the X21 if possible.
https://www.busandcoachcentre.co.uk/info...c-for-sale
Definitely bit overkill for the X21.
But would one of these fit in Eldon Square though?
6190 appears to have died outside of Tesco at Annfield Plain
The forums new Versa on the 21 (autumn 2024) is now…angel pulled off the 21 to rescue an X10
5385 expired on the H today at the Freeman.
Just a thought here....would a 12m Volvo B8L with the low height EvoSeti or E400MMC bodywork not be a solution for the X10 with the 1600nm torque ZF option?
I'm sure with only x4 purchased, GNE could keep them on the X10 for 7-8 years and then as there'd only be x4 as opposed to x7 when Martijn ruled out the idea back in 2019/20, they could be utilised as good spares......even on something like the 327.
At 12m, they'd have no issues in Eldon Square considering 12m OmniDekkas have been used in Eldon Square before.
6235 expired at Sacriston (the withdrawal of those unreliable hybrids has worked I see)
6191 had stopped at Lanchester, driver got it going again after around 15-20minutes.
Seems like there’s an odd issue on bustimes.org where the bus stops tracking if there’s a driver changeover part way through the route.
Makes it look like less buses are operating than actually are.
(02 Jul 2025, 12:46 pm)NEtransport wrote [ -> ]Seems like there’s an odd issue on bustimes.org where the bus stops tracking if there’s a driver changeover part way through the route.
Makes it look like less buses are operating than actually are.
A lot of buses ended up being regulated, this morning, after the disruption in Durham meaning that some services ended up delayed by over half an hour. I think some of the loss of tracking might have been down to destination changes. There’s a Newcastle bound X21 which tracked on bus times as terminating in Durham but we followed it on Southfield way, running 40 minutes late, with Gateshead as the destination.
(02 Jul 2025, 8:33 am)WestDurhamSwift wrote [ -> ]6235 expired at Sacriston (the withdrawal of those unreliable hybrids has worked I see)
6191 had stopped at Lanchester, driver got it going again after around 15-20minutes.
Maybe an indicator where 6086-6100 will go once the new E400MMC arrive for the 56?
Would be more than enough for the 16, 16A, X5 and X15 as well as a few gaps to fill on the on the X45 and 47.
(02 Jul 2025, 5:06 pm)BusLoverMum wrote [ -> ]A lot of buses ended up being regulated, this morning, after the disruption in Durham meaning that some services ended up delayed by over half an hour. I think some of the loss of tracking might have been down to destination changes. There’s a Newcastle bound X21 which tracked on bus times as terminating in Durham but we followed it on Southfield way, running 40 minutes late, with Gateshead as the destination.
It's been happening for a couple of days now. I've noticed it happen when I've been on a route.
You can see for example with the 309 that when there is a driver changeover at New York the bus stops tracking for the rest of the route. It then starts again when the bus starts it's new trip from Newcastle or Blyth.
Vehicles – 309 – bustimes.org
(30 Jun 2025, 8:54 pm)L469 YVK wrote [ -> ]Just a thought here....would a 12m Volvo B8L with the low height EvoSeti or E400MMC bodywork not be a solution for the X10 with the 1600nm torque ZF option?
I'm sure with only x4 purchased, GNE could keep them on the X10 for 7-8 years and then as there'd only be x4 as opposed to x7 when Martijn ruled out the idea back in 2019/20, they could be utilised as good spares......even on something like the 327.
At 12m, they'd have no issues in Eldon Square considering 12m OmniDekkas have been used in Eldon Square before.
Just worth noting, Go-Ahead Group company Thames Travel is currently in the process of receiving 10 Volvo B8L Tri-Axle double deckers with MCV EvoSeti bodies for the River Rapids X40 service between Oxford and Reading. Perhaps something that GNE should look at unless the pursestrings have snapped when they were tighting them.
I’d assume bus times is broken as it’s showing a whole host of cobalt B9s on the 21 today
(03 Jul 2025, 5:53 am)Ambassador wrote [ -> ]I’d assume bus times is broken as it’s showing a whole host of cobalt B9s on the 21 today
I understand bus times is correct - 21 will be the most reliable it has been for years for the next couple of days haha.
L469 YVK - must have listened to your sound advice eh!
(03 Jul 2025, 5:55 am)citaro5284 wrote [ -> ]I understand bus times is correct - 21 will be the most reliable it has been for years for the next couple of days haha.
L469 YVK - must have listened to your sound advice eh!
Well that’s turn up for the books! Less fun for 309 passengers who are inflected with increased streetlites!
(03 Jul 2025, 5:55 am)citaro5284 wrote [ -> ]I understand bus times is correct - 21 will be the most reliable it has been for years for the next couple of days haha
I was surprised to hear from an engineer at Go North East that they were sending all the X-lines StreetDecks at Riverside down to Silverstone this weekend to operate shuttle buses (if they make it, that is - recent performance on X10 would suggest it could be a struggle…)
Understand that is the reason for the Cobalt B9s transferring to Riverside from Percy Main (don’t get excited DaveyBowyer!)
I’m told Riverside and Percy Main are both losing mileage due to no driver at the moment, and now they will be losing mileage due to no bus too.
(03 Jul 2025, 6:02 am)Dan wrote [ -> ]I was surprised to hear from an engineer at Go North East that they were sending all the X-lines StreetDecks at Riverside down to Silverstone this weekend to operate shuttle buses (if they make it, that is - recent performance on X10 would suggest it could be a struggle…)
Understand that is the reason for the Cobalt B9s transferring to Riverside from Percy Main (don’t get excited DaveyBowyer!)
I’m told Riverside and Percy Main are both losing mileage due to no driver at the moment, and now they will be losing mileage due to no bus too.
It looks like there’s still a few hanging back up here but lord that’s an odd one
Piss off your own customers to support the grown up go karting
(03 Jul 2025, 6:02 am)Dan wrote [ -> ]I was surprised to hear from an engineer at Go North East that they were sending all the X-lines StreetDecks at Riverside down to Silverstone this weekend to operate shuttle buses (if they make it, that is - recent performance on X10 would suggest it could be a struggle…)
Understand that is the reason for the Cobalt B9s transferring to Riverside from Percy Main (don’t get excited DaveyBowyer!)
I’m told Riverside and Percy Main are both losing mileage due to no driver at the moment, and now they will be losing mileage due to no bus too.
I don’t see many issues at Percy Main. The services are rarely canceled due to no drivers. Most of the issues are due to the awful streetlites breaking down.
Riverside on the other hand has been consistently bad for a significant period of time now.
(03 Jul 2025, 6:08 am)Ambassador wrote [ -> ]It looks like there’s still a few hanging back up here but lord that’s an odd one
Piss off your own customers to support the grown up go karting
Perhaps fancied a throwback to last year’s drag racing!
Looking at Bus Times it seems to be the Angel Street decks that are off to the races.
(03 Jul 2025, 5:55 am)citaro5284 wrote [ -> ]I understand bus times is correct - 21 will be the most reliable it has been for years for the next couple of days haha.
L469 YVK - must have listened to your sound advice eh!
I notice this also means the open toppers are out on regular work, evidently because PM are struggling for vehicles otherwise. Fine today, when the weather is alright, but I wonder what the plan is for the rain tomorrow and Saturday.
(03 Jul 2025, 6:02 am)Dan wrote [ -> ]I was surprised to hear from an engineer at Go North East that they were sending all the X-lines StreetDecks at Riverside down to Silverstone this weekend to operate shuttle buses (if they make it, that is - recent performance on X10 would suggest it could be a struggle…)
Understand that is the reason for the Cobalt B9s transferring to Riverside from Percy Main (don’t get excited DaveyBowyer!)
I’m told Riverside and Percy Main are both losing mileage due to no driver at the moment, and now they will be losing mileage due to no bus too.
(03 Jul 2025, 7:28 am)Rapidsnap wrote [ -> ]Looking at Bus Times it seems to be the Angel Street decks that are off to the races.
I'm on a Flixbus right now and just passed 5 or 6 Angel double deckers near Wetherby turn off. My driver is from Stanley Coaches and last year left working for National Express after 3 decades and started talking about how greedy GNE are for grasping at any work they can get eventhough they are a failure of a company and their buses don't work.
He said there'll be some old biddy somewhere waiting for her only hourly (or less) bus to the shops and it doesn't turn up because they have prioritised Silverstone over their own customers.
Interesting take, and I must add they had lots of traffic stuck behind them as all of them were incredibly slow, with destinations not working and bits hanging off with paint scraped etc .. you'd think they were off to the scrapyard not representing a company at a national event and having to do the whole journey there and back!
(03 Jul 2025, 10:30 am)PH - BQA wrote [ -> ]I notice this also means the open toppers are out on regular work, evidently because PM are struggling for vehicles otherwise. Fine today, when the weather is alright, but I wonder what the plan is for the rain tomorrow and Saturday.
I'd imagine they have no choice but to use them today and tomorrow.
With 8 Volvo B9s from Percy Main's fleet on loan to Riverside, the four open-tops will need to be used on regular work alongside two of the three DFDS branded Volvo B9s (it must be a quiet week with just one bus of the three required, resulting in a temporary 'inflation' of Percy Main's spare buses).
The remaining two are presumably just coming from Percy Main's own fleet allocation.
Come Saturday, there'll be plenty of spare school buses to fall back on.
What's annoying too, this is the first I've heard of it. If they are running shuttles, drivers up here haven't been offered the chance to run any of the shuttles at the track.