Go North East: Service Suggestions v2
Go North East: Service Suggestions v2
(18 Oct 2016, 2:34 pm)James101 Been having a think about the upcoming changes to the WTX/Durham coast services and how they could be implemented differently.
It's generally agreed that passenger numbers on the southern part of the WTX seem high enough. The reason I suspect it becomes commercially unsustainable is due to the high number of concessionary pass users. Essentially the bus travels from Wingate to Stockton without picking up any new passengers which is a lot of time and miles to cover without bringing in any extra revenue. In the same time/miles period an urban service will transport many more pass holders and generate much more revenue. It's therefore logical to conclude that altering the route to encourage more, shorter, journeys alongside longer ones would boost sustainability.
I've mocked up an example timetable for my suggestion to test suitability:
Service X35 becomes X5
Route and frequency remains unchanged between Sunderland and Peterlee. One service per hour terminates at Peterlee, though this will be replaced exactly by service X6 which will maintain a 30-min frequency along the coast road to Hartlepool. This maintains the current service as well as opening up connections to Seaham, Dalton Park & Teesside.
Service X6
Although I welcome a new service, I don't think the 'real' new X6 amounts to much as all it offers is a new direct link from Blackhall to Seaham and one extra bus per hour on the already busy Hartlepool-Peterlee corridor. The X6 I suggest would also call at Dalton Park and extend to Teesside as well as combining with the X7 to provide the Sunderland - Seaham - Peterlee fast every 30 minutes as per the proposals.
Service X7
I believe the southern part of the X7 will be missed, but it needs reforming to be sustainable. Routing it via Hartlepool & Billingham does add significant extra running time, but it remains competitive with the 21/21A - but with arguably more useful links if people in Wingate & Station Town wish to travel to simply the nearest Rail Station/Hospital/Cinema etc. Combined with X6, this would provide a 30 minute frequency Hartlepool - Billingham - Stockton - Middlesbrough along a much faster route than that of the frequently overcrowded 36. Running via Teesdale in Stockton will link together most of the colleges in the northern Tees Valley meaning Go North East will be the preferred option for the lucrative student market.
If I've done my maths correctly the 'real' proposals will have a PVR of 13 - factoring in the X5, the X6/X7 and an extra bus on the 202.
I think my suggestions could be implemented with a combined PVR of 15. For an increase in PVR of just 2, I believe the new links created and commercial sustainability would be well worth it.
(18 Oct 2016, 2:34 pm)James101 Been having a think about the upcoming changes to the WTX/Durham coast services and how they could be implemented differently.
It's generally agreed that passenger numbers on the southern part of the WTX seem high enough. The reason I suspect it becomes commercially unsustainable is due to the high number of concessionary pass users. Essentially the bus travels from Wingate to Stockton without picking up any new passengers which is a lot of time and miles to cover without bringing in any extra revenue. In the same time/miles period an urban service will transport many more pass holders and generate much more revenue. It's therefore logical to conclude that altering the route to encourage more, shorter, journeys alongside longer ones would boost sustainability.
I've mocked up an example timetable for my suggestion to test suitability:
Service X35 becomes X5
Route and frequency remains unchanged between Sunderland and Peterlee. One service per hour terminates at Peterlee, though this will be replaced exactly by service X6 which will maintain a 30-min frequency along the coast road to Hartlepool. This maintains the current service as well as opening up connections to Seaham, Dalton Park & Teesside.
Service X6
Although I welcome a new service, I don't think the 'real' new X6 amounts to much as all it offers is a new direct link from Blackhall to Seaham and one extra bus per hour on the already busy Hartlepool-Peterlee corridor. The X6 I suggest would also call at Dalton Park and extend to Teesside as well as combining with the X7 to provide the Sunderland - Seaham - Peterlee fast every 30 minutes as per the proposals.
Service X7
I believe the southern part of the X7 will be missed, but it needs reforming to be sustainable. Routing it via Hartlepool & Billingham does add significant extra running time, but it remains competitive with the 21/21A - but with arguably more useful links if people in Wingate & Station Town wish to travel to simply the nearest Rail Station/Hospital/Cinema etc. Combined with X6, this would provide a 30 minute frequency Hartlepool - Billingham - Stockton - Middlesbrough along a much faster route than that of the frequently overcrowded 36. Running via Teesdale in Stockton will link together most of the colleges in the northern Tees Valley meaning Go North East will be the preferred option for the lucrative student market.
If I've done my maths correctly the 'real' proposals will have a PVR of 13 - factoring in the X5, the X6/X7 and an extra bus on the 202.
I think my suggestions could be implemented with a combined PVR of 15. For an increase in PVR of just 2, I believe the new links created and commercial sustainability would be well worth it.
