(05 Feb 2016, 9:44 pm)ifm001 wrote [ -> ]I'd rather the additional X21 stop had been Birtley Town Centre rather than Low Fell. Stopping at all the stops on the 21 between Birtley and Newcastle takes ages. Yes Arriva X12 provides the link but no good if using buzzfares and the smartzone card is yet to be introduced in Gateshead. Which to be honest proably never will as the only stagecoach and arriva services are x12 and x34 so no point in smartzone for Gateshead.
But faster expresses between Birtley and Newcastle please GNE
Having no choice but to trundle through Birtley at 20mph would reduce reliability. Heck, you already have 10 buses an hour to Newcastle via Durham Road - and the 21 doesn't take much longer than the X12. I'd understand the want for more express buses if the time difference was 10-15 minutes, but it's not. It's half that.
(05 Feb 2016, 9:44 pm)ifm001 wrote [ -> ]I'd rather the additional X21 stop had been Birtley Town Centre rather than Low Fell. Stopping at all the stops on the 21 between Birtley and Newcastle takes ages. Yes Arriva X12 provides the link but no good if using buzzfares and the smartzone card is yet to be introduced in Gateshead. Which to be honest proably never will as the only stagecoach and arriva services are x12 and x34 so no point in smartzone for Gateshead.
But faster expresses between Birtley and Newcastle please GNE
Problem with that would be the additional journey time it would take. I'd hate it if the X21 route was made much longer. At least the one extra stop Low Fell doesn't really add much time onto the route, Low Fell would probably add at least 5 extra minutes onto the route, you don't really want the route taking the same length of time or longer than Arriva's competing X12 service.
OK I got it wrong in post #2322 when I speculated that 15 minutes would need to be added to the X21 running times so that Streetwrecks could cope - it's only 5 min northbound and 6 min southbound and I suppose 1 min of that will be for the new Low Fell stop; nothing wrong with stopping there, but it would make a mockery of the service to go through Birtley. Hopefully "Pronto" has gone, but I suppose it's too much to hope that my long suggested "OK Express" will take its place.
I suppose "Angel Express" has a logic to it.
What about timetables fo the 19 thats getting updated in march
(05 Feb 2016, 11:23 pm)dannygee wrote [ -> ]What about timetables fo the 19 thats getting updated in march
GNE will put the March changes on soon.
Could be next week for those ones.
(05 Feb 2016, 10:31 pm)BusLoverMum wrote [ -> ]Having no choice but to trundle through Birtley at 20mph would reduce reliability. Heck, you already have 10 buses an hour to Newcastle via Durham Road - and the 21 doesn't take much longer than the X12. I'd understand the want for more express buses if the time difference was 10-15 minutes, but it's not. It's half that.
Outside of peak traffic at a crawl, not a single bus adheres to 20mph through Birtley.
At peak the X12 is a lot quicker purely because of heavy loadings through Durham Rd. The 7.30 X12 takes me about 15 mins to Gateshead. Normally the 21 is at least 30 minutes. X12 is 60p cheaper too.
Ironically most X21s seem to happily trundle through Birtley though that may change once western bypass works are complete.
I don't think Low Fell necessarily needs faster links to Durham. It's an odd one, I can on,y see it as a shot at Arriva/money to be made from low fell, which I guess makes commercial sense
(05 Feb 2016, 4:10 pm)Jimmi wrote [ -> ]Just me who doesn't really care that much what the branding looks like? So long as I can identify the routes they are branded for, I'm not really bothered what they look like so much, I'm like "there is a Pronto" not "there is a bus with crap branding that makes it look like a menu for a pizza shop"
^^ the best description of Pronto branding I've read
(05 Feb 2016, 12:51 pm)Michael wrote [ -> ]Along with the changes GNE have relieved the new "Red Arrows" Branding.
Uploaded a pic but its blurry
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Interestingly the new X21 timetable is in the rubbish style.. keeping the new branding under wraps for the time being?
Nobody seems to have noticed the additional sticker next to the wifi symbol.
New buses such as the Streetlites have three stickers - wifi, usb charging and plug sockets...
(06 Feb 2016, 5:58 pm)Andreos1 wrote [ -> ]Nobody seems to have noticed the additional sticker next to the wifi symbol.
New buses such as the Streetlites have three stickers - wifi, usb charging and plug sockets...
Its a sticker to indicate that the service has Next Stop Announcements, the Red Kite and C&C Streetlites had this sticker added not too long ago.
PB0003954/538 - GO NORTH EAST LIMITED, 117 QUEEN STREET, GATESHEAD, NE8 2UA
Variation Accepted by SN: Operating between Ashington Bus Station and North Shields, Town Centre given service number 19 effective from 22-Feb-2016. To amend Route.
PB0003954/658 - GO NORTH EAST LIMITED, 117 QUEEN STREET, GATESHEAD, NE8 2UA
Variation Accepted by SN: Operating between Bedlington Station, Clayton Arms and Linton, First Row given service number 434 effective from 22-Feb-2016. To amend Route.
(08 Feb 2016, 6:51 pm)Michael wrote [ -> ]PB0003954/538 - GO NORTH EAST LIMITED, 117 QUEEN STREET, GATESHEAD, NE8 2UA
Variation Accepted by SN: Operating between Ashington Bus Station and North Shields, Town Centre given service number 19 effective from 22-Feb-2016. To amend Route.
PB0003954/658 - GO NORTH EAST LIMITED, 117 QUEEN STREET, GATESHEAD, NE8 2UA
Variation Accepted by SN: Operating between Bedlington Station, Clayton Arms and Linton, First Row given service number 434 effective from 22-Feb-2016. To amend Route.
Theres a diversion at bedlington station
PB0002400/480 - GO NORTHERN LTD T/A GO NORTH EAST, 117 QUEEN STREET, GATESHEAD, NE8 2UA
Cancellation Accepted: Operating between CASSOP, DEAN VIEW and ARNISON CENTRE given service number 59 effective from 02-Apr-2016.
(09 Feb 2016, 11:53 am)Michael wrote [ -> ]PB0002400/480 - GO NORTHERN LTD T/A GO NORTH EAST, 117 QUEEN STREET, GATESHEAD, NE8 2UA
Cancellation Accepted: Operating between CASSOP, DEAN VIEW and ARNISON CENTRE given service number 59 effective from 02-Apr-2016.
Wonder if GNE have lost the contract to another operator or if the contract has been dropped entirely?
(09 Feb 2016, 11:58 am)Jimmi wrote [ -> ]Wonder if GNE have lost the contract to another operator or if the contract has been dropped entirely?
Not sure Jimmi, i'm not from the area so i have no idea what the passenger numbers are like.
Maybe council cuts?.
(09 Feb 2016, 12:17 pm)Michael wrote [ -> ]Not sure Jimmi, i'm not from the area so i have no idea what the passenger numbers are like.
Maybe council cuts?.
This service was paid out of the individual grant money that every DDC Councillor gets at the start of every financial year. The money has to used to benefit the local communities. This means that Cassop
Quarrington Hill and Kelloe will not have a bus on a Sunday.
.....like most other rural communities in County Durham who lost weekday services after 8pm and all Sunday services from April 2011. The Sunday 59 and GNE 15 were exceptions, paid for in other ways.
(09 Feb 2016, 11:53 am)Michael wrote [ -> ]PB0002400/480 - GO NORTHERN LTD T/A GO NORTH EAST, 117 QUEEN STREET, GATESHEAD, NE8 2UA
Cancellation Accepted: Operating between CASSOP, DEAN VIEW and ARNISON CENTRE given service number 59 effective from 02-Apr-2016.
Is the cassop - thornley/wheatley hill section the secured bit, then? Wonder what will happen to that.
(09 Feb 2016, 11:05 pm)BusLoverMum wrote [ -> ]Is the cassop - thornley/wheatley hill section the secured bit, then? Wonder what will happen to that.
By the sounds of things, some of those areas are going to be left with no Sunday bus service.