Pros and cons of 'the big three' operators in the North East
Pros and cons of 'the big three' operators in the North East
(12 Jul 2020, 10:49 pm)JP6004 Tell that to arriva
(12 Jul 2020, 10:49 pm)JP6004 Tell that to arriva
(12 Jul 2020, 10:52 pm)streetdeckfan There's nowt wrong with Arriva's fleet! They have the highest quality, best kept vehicles in the industry!When did that happen and what high quality vehicles?.....I fondly remember the notices GNE placed on the B10s when they took over Hexham, apologising for the state of the vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 10:52 pm)streetdeckfan There's nowt wrong with Arriva's fleet! They have the highest quality, best kept vehicles in the industry!When did that happen and what high quality vehicles?.....I fondly remember the notices GNE placed on the B10s when they took over Hexham, apologising for the state of the vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:00 pm)JP6004 When did that happen and what high quality vehicles?.....I fondly remember the notices GNE placed on the B10s when they took over Hexham, apologising for the state of the vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:00 pm)JP6004 When did that happen and what high quality vehicles?.....I fondly remember the notices GNE placed on the B10s when they took over Hexham, apologising for the state of the vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:08 pm)streetdeckfan r/wooshYes if your going to market something as premium, make sure it is premium like GNE Xlines. Dont brand it as premium because it's not as shite as the other vehicles
Seriously though, Arriva should be ashamed of the state of some of their vehicles! I'd argue that some of GNE's worst vehicles (that they've owned from new anyway) are about equivalent to Arriva's best!
(12 Jul 2020, 11:08 pm)streetdeckfan r/wooshYes if your going to market something as premium, make sure it is premium like GNE Xlines. Dont brand it as premium because it's not as shite as the other vehicles
Seriously though, Arriva should be ashamed of the state of some of their vehicles! I'd argue that some of GNE's worst vehicles (that they've owned from new anyway) are about equivalent to Arriva's best!
(12 Jul 2020, 11:00 pm)JP6004 When did that happen and what high quality vehicles?.....I fondly remember the notices GNE placed on the B10s when they took over Hexham, apologising for the state of the vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:00 pm)JP6004 When did that happen and what high quality vehicles?.....I fondly remember the notices GNE placed on the B10s when they took over Hexham, apologising for the state of the vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:13 pm)JP6004 Yes if your going to market something as premium, make sure it is premium like GNE Xlines. Dont brand it as premium because it's not as shite as the other vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:13 pm)JP6004 Yes if your going to market something as premium, make sure it is premium like GNE Xlines. Dont brand it as premium because it's not as shite as the other vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:39 pm)Storx You can have rose tinted glasses on but Arriva withdrew the crap that came the other way pretty much immediately.Yea arrives offering still bad 10 years later
Volvo B10BLE's and Darts one way
Leyland Olympians and Prestiges the other.
You really need to look behind vehicles once in awhile. When your bashing Arriva all the time, you really should compare the network from now and 10 year ago and you'll realise who's butchered their's the most especially in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland. Then at the same look at all the Nexus contracts and who's bus routes they originally were or are. You'll be surprised. Hats out to the marketing department of who wins both those as you do a good job, credit where it's due.
(12 Jul 2020, 11:43 pm)streetdeckfan I mean, they seem to refurbish them then just forget about them.Yea the citaros look a bit tiresome now. However they do seem to have gone for the youngest, high spec vehicles for Xlines. Obviously 6336 & 6337 are older, they still decent for the spares
What makes me laugh is the 'upgraded' vehicles they put on the X46. Imagine if GNE gave the B7 Geminis a refurb and put them on an X-Lines route
(12 Jul 2020, 11:39 pm)Storx You can have rose tinted glasses on but Arriva withdrew the crap that came the other way pretty much immediately.Yea arrives offering still bad 10 years later
Volvo B10BLE's and Darts one way
Leyland Olympians and Prestiges the other.
You really need to look behind vehicles once in awhile. When your bashing Arriva all the time, you really should compare the network from now and 10 year ago and you'll realise who's butchered their's the most especially in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland. Then at the same look at all the Nexus contracts and who's bus routes they originally were or are. You'll be surprised. Hats out to the marketing department of who wins both those as you do a good job, credit where it's due.
(12 Jul 2020, 11:43 pm)streetdeckfan I mean, they seem to refurbish them then just forget about them.Yea the citaros look a bit tiresome now. However they do seem to have gone for the youngest, high spec vehicles for Xlines. Obviously 6336 & 6337 are older, they still decent for the spares
What makes me laugh is the 'upgraded' vehicles they put on the X46. Imagine if GNE gave the B7 Geminis a refurb and put them on an X-Lines route
(12 Jul 2020, 11:08 pm)streetdeckfan r/woosh
Seriously though, Arriva should be ashamed of the state of some of their vehicles! I'd argue that some of GNE's worst vehicles (that they've owned from new anyway) are about equivalent to Arriva's best!
(12 Jul 2020, 11:13 pm)JP6004 Yes if your going to market something as premium, make sure it is premium like GNE Xlines. Dont brand it as premium because it's not as shite as the other vehicles
(12 Jul 2020, 11:08 pm)streetdeckfan r/woosh
Seriously though, Arriva should be ashamed of the state of some of their vehicles! I'd argue that some of GNE's worst vehicles (that they've owned from new anyway) are about equivalent to Arriva's best!
(12 Jul 2020, 11:13 pm)JP6004 Yes if your going to market something as premium, make sure it is premium like GNE Xlines. Dont brand it as premium because it's not as shite as the other vehicles
(13 Jul 2020, 8:17 am)mb134 Christ some of this is cringe worthy to read.I may of had a few drinks.
Arriva are, by no means, outstanding at fleet presentation, however to say that their best vehicles are equivalent to GNEs worst is laughable. The first bus I got this morning through to town - 17 plate MMC, far better in internal and external condition than any of GNEs native stuff pre circa 2013 (and of a similar standard to the more recent stuff).
I like how you also leave out GNEs second hand vehicles. I was on 6941 the other week and it was an absolute embarrassment. On the other hand, I had ANEs 7484 on my way home the other night - 18 years old, interior is still fresh and it's smartly presented externally as well.
Then the point about the branding of old vehicles - does your memory not stretch back to the Pronto X21? The X46 B7s have been refurbed with WiFi, Civic V3 e-leather seating and (I believe) USB charging on at least some of them.
By all means, criticise Arriva for repainting buses every time there's a new ice age, or inconsistent route branding. However the constant rhetoric by some on here that Arriva are essentially sending out some sheds on wheels is rather tiresome (as is the idea that GNE churn out the bus equivalent of a Rolls Royce on every trip).
(13 Jul 2020, 8:17 am)mb134 Christ some of this is cringe worthy to read.I may of had a few drinks.
Arriva are, by no means, outstanding at fleet presentation, however to say that their best vehicles are equivalent to GNEs worst is laughable. The first bus I got this morning through to town - 17 plate MMC, far better in internal and external condition than any of GNEs native stuff pre circa 2013 (and of a similar standard to the more recent stuff).
I like how you also leave out GNEs second hand vehicles. I was on 6941 the other week and it was an absolute embarrassment. On the other hand, I had ANEs 7484 on my way home the other night - 18 years old, interior is still fresh and it's smartly presented externally as well.
Then the point about the branding of old vehicles - does your memory not stretch back to the Pronto X21? The X46 B7s have been refurbed with WiFi, Civic V3 e-leather seating and (I believe) USB charging on at least some of them.
By all means, criticise Arriva for repainting buses every time there's a new ice age, or inconsistent route branding. However the constant rhetoric by some on here that Arriva are essentially sending out some sheds on wheels is rather tiresome (as is the idea that GNE churn out the bus equivalent of a Rolls Royce on every trip).
(13 Jul 2020, 8:29 am)JP6004 I may of had a few drinks.
My original point was arriva brand something as premium when vehicles are no better than their bog standard. Least with GNE you can tell the difference internally between Xlines and standard. IIRC arriva still had a k reg vehicle kicking about in service not too long ago, long after other operators had disposed of theirs.
Not to worry though, those pesky presidents and vyking soon be gone
(13 Jul 2020, 8:29 am)JP6004 I may of had a few drinks.
My original point was arriva brand something as premium when vehicles are no better than their bog standard. Least with GNE you can tell the difference internally between Xlines and standard. IIRC arriva still had a k reg vehicle kicking about in service not too long ago, long after other operators had disposed of theirs.
Not to worry though, those pesky presidents and vyking soon be gone
(13 Jul 2020, 8:17 am)mb134 Christ some of this is cringe worthy to read.
Arriva are, by no means, outstanding at fleet presentation, however to say that their best vehicles are equivalent to GNEs worst is laughable. The first bus I got this morning through to town - 17 plate MMC, far better in internal and external condition than any of GNEs native stuff pre circa 2013 (and of a similar standard to the more recent stuff).
I like how you also leave out GNEs second hand vehicles. I was on 6941 the other week and it was an absolute embarrassment. On the other hand, I had ANEs 7484 on my way home the other night - 18 years old, interior is still fresh and it's smartly presented externally as well.
Then the point about the branding of old vehicles - does your memory not stretch back to the Pronto X21? The X46 B7s have been refurbed with WiFi, Civic V3 e-leather seating and (I believe) USB charging on at least some of them.
By all means, criticise Arriva for repainting buses every time there's a new ice age, or inconsistent route branding. However the constant rhetoric by some on here that Arriva are essentially sending out some sheds on wheels is rather tiresome (as is the idea that GNE churn out the bus equivalent of a Rolls Royce on every trip).
(13 Jul 2020, 8:17 am)mb134 Christ some of this is cringe worthy to read.
Arriva are, by no means, outstanding at fleet presentation, however to say that their best vehicles are equivalent to GNEs worst is laughable. The first bus I got this morning through to town - 17 plate MMC, far better in internal and external condition than any of GNEs native stuff pre circa 2013 (and of a similar standard to the more recent stuff).
I like how you also leave out GNEs second hand vehicles. I was on 6941 the other week and it was an absolute embarrassment. On the other hand, I had ANEs 7484 on my way home the other night - 18 years old, interior is still fresh and it's smartly presented externally as well.
Then the point about the branding of old vehicles - does your memory not stretch back to the Pronto X21? The X46 B7s have been refurbed with WiFi, Civic V3 e-leather seating and (I believe) USB charging on at least some of them.
By all means, criticise Arriva for repainting buses every time there's a new ice age, or inconsistent route branding. However the constant rhetoric by some on here that Arriva are essentially sending out some sheds on wheels is rather tiresome (as is the idea that GNE churn out the bus equivalent of a Rolls Royce on every trip).
(13 Jul 2020, 9:30 am)peter Just to clarify it was not a K-reg (1992) vehicle (tho there is a K-reg Optare Delta used in an ancillary role at Stockton) there was a singular W-reg (2000) B10BLE in service at Redcar (who have a habit of keeping individual older buses in use long after the rest have departed - see Optare Prisma 3007.) Apparently it was still very capable despite its age, but has now been converted into a Driver Trainer.When I said it wasnt too long ago, it was a couple years maybe. Cant remember where it was but was deffo on normal service, albeit maybe not a normal allocation
(13 Jul 2020, 9:30 am)peter Just to clarify it was not a K-reg (1992) vehicle (tho there is a K-reg Optare Delta used in an ancillary role at Stockton) there was a singular W-reg (2000) B10BLE in service at Redcar (who have a habit of keeping individual older buses in use long after the rest have departed - see Optare Prisma 3007.) Apparently it was still very capable despite its age, but has now been converted into a Driver Trainer.When I said it wasnt too long ago, it was a couple years maybe. Cant remember where it was but was deffo on normal service, albeit maybe not a normal allocation
(13 Jul 2020, 9:31 am)streetdeckfan See, every time I've used Arriva's MMCs I could have sworn there was a drummer sitting upstairs with the amount of rattles and crashed, one of them was so bad I had to get off and change buses.
And my reason for only excluding GNE's second hand vehicles is the majority of the offenders (such as 6941 that you mentioned) shouldn't really be out and about in service and were acquired specifically for event and scholar work.
As for the X46, all Arriva have done is put lipstick on a pig with those ALX400s, they're still bloody awful to travel on, which I unfortunately have to do from time to time (I really miss when GNE ran some X46 services!).
I'm not saying GNE are perfect, just that they, for the most part at least, keep the interiors of their vehicles much nicer, I can't remember the last time I travelled on a GNE bus that had ripped seats or holes in the back from where they've been melted with a lighter, but they seem to be a regular occurrence on Arriva buses, at least in Durham.
(13 Jul 2020, 9:31 am)streetdeckfan See, every time I've used Arriva's MMCs I could have sworn there was a drummer sitting upstairs with the amount of rattles and crashed, one of them was so bad I had to get off and change buses.
And my reason for only excluding GNE's second hand vehicles is the majority of the offenders (such as 6941 that you mentioned) shouldn't really be out and about in service and were acquired specifically for event and scholar work.
As for the X46, all Arriva have done is put lipstick on a pig with those ALX400s, they're still bloody awful to travel on, which I unfortunately have to do from time to time (I really miss when GNE ran some X46 services!).
I'm not saying GNE are perfect, just that they, for the most part at least, keep the interiors of their vehicles much nicer, I can't remember the last time I travelled on a GNE bus that had ripped seats or holes in the back from where they've been melted with a lighter, but they seem to be a regular occurrence on Arriva buses, at least in Durham.
(12 Jul 2020, 11:39 pm)Storx You can have rose tinted glasses on but Arriva withdrew the crap that came the other way pretty much immediately.
Volvo B10BLE's and Darts one way
Leyland Olympians and Prestiges the other.
You really need to look behind vehicles once in awhile. When your bashing Arriva all the time, you really should compare the network from now and 10 year ago and you'll realise who's butchered their's the most especially in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland. Then at the same look at all the Nexus contracts and who's bus routes they originally were or are. You'll be surprised. Hats out to the marketing department of who wins both those as you do a good job, credit where it's due.
(12 Jul 2020, 11:39 pm)Storx You can have rose tinted glasses on but Arriva withdrew the crap that came the other way pretty much immediately.
Volvo B10BLE's and Darts one way
Leyland Olympians and Prestiges the other.
You really need to look behind vehicles once in awhile. When your bashing Arriva all the time, you really should compare the network from now and 10 year ago and you'll realise who's butchered their's the most especially in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland. Then at the same look at all the Nexus contracts and who's bus routes they originally were or are. You'll be surprised. Hats out to the marketing department of who wins both those as you do a good job, credit where it's due.
(13 Jul 2020, 9:34 am)JP6004 When I said it wasnt too long ago, it was a couple years maybe. Cant remember where it was but was deffo on normal service, albeit maybe not a normal allocation
(13 Jul 2020, 9:34 am)JP6004 When I said it wasnt too long ago, it was a couple years maybe. Cant remember where it was but was deffo on normal service, albeit maybe not a normal allocation
Mods, any chance these posts about who is the best out of the big 3 can be moved to a separate thread please? Thanks.
(13 Jul 2020, 10:17 am)mb134 ANE went fully low floor before both GNE and SNE iirc (yet another thing that is rarely brought up because it doesn't suit agendas). As noted above the only vehicle it's likely to have been is 4015 (K415BHN), but that's not used in public service. Anything else K reg would have been long gone - M reg Olympians went in 2010 for context.What agenda? My original comment was stating the difference between operators vision of premium service. Xlines being an example of excellent execution (imo) Arrivas having little difference from their normal offering. End of. Yet some people see this as an attack or looking through rose tinted glasses. It's my opinion.
(13 Jul 2020, 10:17 am)mb134 ANE went fully low floor before both GNE and SNE iirc (yet another thing that is rarely brought up because it doesn't suit agendas). As noted above the only vehicle it's likely to have been is 4015 (K415BHN), but that's not used in public service. Anything else K reg would have been long gone - M reg Olympians went in 2010 for context.What agenda? My original comment was stating the difference between operators vision of premium service. Xlines being an example of excellent execution (imo) Arrivas having little difference from their normal offering. End of. Yet some people see this as an attack or looking through rose tinted glasses. It's my opinion.
(13 Jul 2020, 8:17 am)mb134 Christ some of this is cringe worthy to read.
Arriva are, by no means, outstanding at fleet presentation, however to say that their best vehicles are equivalent to GNEs worst is laughable. The first bus I got this morning through to town - 17 plate MMC, far better in internal and external condition than any of GNEs native stuff pre circa 2013 (and of a similar standard to the more recent stuff).
I like how you also leave out GNEs second hand vehicles. I was on 6941 the other week and it was an absolute embarrassment. On the other hand, I had ANEs 7484 on my way home the other night - 18 years old, interior is still fresh and it's smartly presented externally as well.
Then the point about the branding of old vehicles - does your memory not stretch back to the Pronto X21? The X46 B7s have been refurbed with WiFi, Civic V3 e-leather seating and (I believe) USB charging on at least some of them.
By all means, criticise Arriva for repainting buses every time there's a new ice age, or inconsistent route branding. However the constant rhetoric by some on here that Arriva are essentially sending out some sheds on wheels is rather tiresome (as is the idea that GNE churn out the bus equivalent of a Rolls Royce on every trip).
(13 Jul 2020, 8:17 am)mb134 Christ some of this is cringe worthy to read.
Arriva are, by no means, outstanding at fleet presentation, however to say that their best vehicles are equivalent to GNEs worst is laughable. The first bus I got this morning through to town - 17 plate MMC, far better in internal and external condition than any of GNEs native stuff pre circa 2013 (and of a similar standard to the more recent stuff).
I like how you also leave out GNEs second hand vehicles. I was on 6941 the other week and it was an absolute embarrassment. On the other hand, I had ANEs 7484 on my way home the other night - 18 years old, interior is still fresh and it's smartly presented externally as well.
Then the point about the branding of old vehicles - does your memory not stretch back to the Pronto X21? The X46 B7s have been refurbed with WiFi, Civic V3 e-leather seating and (I believe) USB charging on at least some of them.
By all means, criticise Arriva for repainting buses every time there's a new ice age, or inconsistent route branding. However the constant rhetoric by some on here that Arriva are essentially sending out some sheds on wheels is rather tiresome (as is the idea that GNE churn out the bus equivalent of a Rolls Royce on every trip).
ANE went fully low floor before both GNE and SNE iirc (yet another thing that is rarely brought up because it doesn't suit agendas). As noted above the only vehicle it's likely to have been is 4015 (K415BHN), but that's not used in public service. Anything else K reg would have been long gone - M reg Olympians went in 2010 for context.
I would disagree with this. Stagecoach Hartlepool was first depot to be fully low Floor after the Spring 2010 service changes when the 2 remaining Volvo B10 where withdrawn from service with only enviro 200 and Darts been used. I know Arriva and Go North East still used step entrance buses for a good few after that.
As for the pros and cons of each of the big 3.
Well Go North East have the nicest buses but where I am they kept changing the service number, adding services and withdrawn it after a few years and now they don't have a service here at all.
Arriva buses are mostly ok. They seem to have a stable network at least and rarely about with services.
Stage coach. Main operator. Buses are rubbish and frequently breakdown. Service changes have made services worse in some areas and no investment in the fleet. So I would say none of them stand out they all need to improve.
