(21 Sep 2021, 6:38 pm)Adrian Yep, a massive lack of planning and foresight. There's no way that both of those locations should have been redeveloped with a change of use. 

The issue now is of course where would you put a new bus station? The site on the junction of Westmorland Road and Blandford Street would probably be most suitable, and of course not too far from the original Marlborough Crescent.

(21 Sep 2021, 6:38 pm)Adrian Yep, a massive lack of planning and foresight. There's no way that both of those locations should have been redeveloped with a change of use. 

The issue now is of course where would you put a new bus station? The site on the junction of Westmorland Road and Blandford Street would probably be most suitable, and of course not too far from the original Marlborough Crescent.

(21 Sep 2021, 8:58 pm)Storx Personally I'd go for the opposite end of town, either on the Dex Car Park, Newcastle Building Society, New Croft Centre, The Newbridge Hotel. Take your pick which as they're all eyesores and mostly abandoned.

Least the Gateshead head services can then come in straight off the Central Motorway and go out without touching Newcastle at all, if they want to use the High Level Bridge they can go via Mosley Street.

I know someone will say people don't want a bus from there but there's no issues with Haymarket at the other side of town which is just as far out the way for the main shopping places. It'd also help regenerate what's the absolute toilet end of Newcastle to be polite especially when Blackett Street and Pilgrim Street is pedestrianised, it would connect quite well.

Depending where you built it you could possibly link Manor Metro and Manors Railway stations to them aswell.

(21 Sep 2021, 10:48 pm)Ambassador Haymarket is bang in the middle. Direct access to Eldon Sq through M&S, Northumberland St and a few minutes cut through to Blackett St. 

The whole NewBridge, Pilgrim area is owned by the Reuben Bros, the dex is due to come down as part of the East Pilgrim St project, hence New Bridge St and Pilgrim St closing. 

New Bridge Hotel is being demolished to become a sky scraper complex. 

that whole area is on the up and developers sure as hell ain’t gonna pop a bus station in there. Newcastle Building Society sold Portland House for a huge profit last year, mid pandemic which shows you the value in the area. 

Newcastle doesn’t have enough land spare or the political will. The only sites that look like they will open up are Forth Banks area and the arena but if Marlborough Crescent was too far, these are even worse.

(19 Mar 2022, 4:04 pm)Adrian Looks like this is going to drag on for even longer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-60791617

(19 Mar 2022, 4:04 pm)Adrian Looks like this is going to drag on for even longer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-60791617

(20 Mar 2022, 7:00 pm)busmanT and so it should. The services using Blackett Street are the busiest in the north east and serve areas of high population density.
There aren’t really any suitable alternative routes with creating “bus jams” and little suitable pavement space for stops.
The last thing that operators need whilst trying to get passengers back on their buses is for them to be dumped at unsuitable stops.

(20 Mar 2022, 8:19 pm)Adrian We'll see in time, but I can't see the Planning Inspectorate ruling in bus operators favour here.

The argument that a move away from Blackett Street would be to the detriment of elderly and disabled people is pretty baseless. Waiting facilities on Blackett Street are pretty poor and has become dangerous for pedestrians due to over-bussing. 

Arguably a bus station provides better waiting facilities for everyone, especially the elderly and disabled. It also takes customers straight into Eldon Square, avoiding the elements. If Blackett Street services were diverted into Eldon Square, then the only shopping area that would be slightly further away is the Grainger Market, but a Market Street/Newgate Street loop would actually improve access.

(20 Mar 2022, 8:32 pm)OrangeArrow49 Could Eldon Square accommodate the Blackett Street buses?

(20 Mar 2022, 9:10 pm)Ianthegoon I think that's the fundamental problem here!  Eldon Square is already too full of vehicles, there's bus congestion on the roads leading to and from that area, and there's then a whole raft of additional routes that need to be squeezed through the centre somehow.  I can see the benefit of making Blackett Street pedestrian, but I cannot work out where you could then send the buses!  At least, not without causing other problems.

(20 Mar 2022, 9:10 pm)Ianthegoon I think that's the fundamental problem here!  Eldon Square is already too full of vehicles, there's bus congestion on the roads leading to and from that area, and there's then a whole raft of additional routes that need to be squeezed through the centre somehow.  I can see the benefit of making Blackett Street pedestrian, but I cannot work out where you could then send the buses!  At least, not without causing other problems.

(20 Mar 2022, 10:18 pm)ne14ne1 The junctions around the city’s bus loop have been/are being upgraded with a combination of bus priority measures and new smart traffic signals. Additional bus stops are being created to accommodate the displayed routes. 
I don’t think cross city services should be put into bus stations as calling at a bus station takes longer than calling at an on street bus stop.

(20 Mar 2022, 10:56 pm)No Storx They should turn Clayton Street / Nun Street / Grainger Street / Newgate Street into a gyratory imo with all buses running around in a clockwise circle (I know slightly longer for buses heading towards High Level) with Grainger Street still being two way. Then turn Newgate / Nun / Clayton streets into bus stops. They're all wide enough for bays if you removed the taxi ranks, loading bays and parking and all could do with a boost in trade.

The taxi rank can be moved into the bus stop opposite of Sinners which is unused.

(20 Mar 2022, 11:02 pm)Unber43 Could they not knock down Eldon Square Garden thing, and just put another bus station in there for SC or which ever way they want to do it. So each company has a segregated area to stop in, obvs there might be the rare GCT bus or something. Or knock down whats infront of haymarket