(25 Jul 2016, 2:15 pm)NK53 TKT wrote [ -> ]The 33 today I was on was 33 minutes late with 547
(27 Jul 2016, 7:09 pm)Olympian3521 wrote [ -> ]Don't know if it's been mentioned before (apologies if it has) but a red gne omnidekka has entered service at Stanley numbered 3993. 6137 and 6138 in b & h colours were parked up at Consett bus station today.I thought dan said the omnidekkas were numbered onwards from the p reg olympians as 3993 was p825sgp.
(27 Jul 2016, 7:16 pm)biglugs@yahoo.com wrote [ -> ]I thought dan said the omnidekkas were numbered onwards from the p reg olympians as 3993 was p825sgp.
(27 Jul 2016, 8:28 pm)Tom wrote [ -> ]Already seems to me the Solos aren't big enough for any of the 40, 41 or 42 services. Most of the ones I have seen have had most seats taking, and quite a few with standees, especially the 40/41 going around Holy Cross and the 42 going to Asda.
(27 Jul 2016, 9:09 pm)Jackamcardle wrote [ -> ]It's just the 42 for me, it was absolutely packed coming out of Benton Asda.
Also, the new 10A timetable in Newcastle Eldon Square still only showed that it went to Rockwood Hill, with a tiny little part at the bottom (labelled 'y' - exactly) stating that it goes to High Spen and Blackhall Mill, but it never actually shows that on the timeline of the stops. I don't think the changes have been advertised well enough, on the timetable itself it never actually states that its going to Blackhall Mill on the front of the leaflet, it waits until your'e inside to tell you that. I'm sure a regular user of the 11 wouldn't recognise that there is an extension of the 10A (and the withdrawal of the 11 in that way) if it wasn't for the huge petition set up on Facebook that was shared hundreds if not thousands of time. It's almost as if they're scared of telling people that it extends to Blackhall Mill hourly...
A post on the facebook page about the withdrawal of the 11 pretty much sums it up how many of the customers feel:
Dear Go North East,
Like many others, I rely on service 11 everyday and now that you are withdrawing it many of us will be left with a totally inadequate bus service. If you're wondering why bus ridership is decreasing then look no further than this case study - if you don't provide a bus service; nobody will use the bus! Just a few short years ago, Go North East used to conduct widespread passenger consultations. In fact the present service 11 came into being because of one of those consultations. They were an excellent example of a bus company actually listening to its passengers, and I Applauded you for that. However, now it seems the customers opinion is no longer valued, with cut to important services such as the 43, 44 and 44A and now the 11. Crucially, passengers responded to these cuts by signing petitions pleading with you to listen to their concerns. The 43 and 44 petition attracted hundreds if not thousands of signatures and the petition to keep service 11 has attracted over 1,000. Is this not testament that the withdrawing these services was not the right thing to do?
To really add insult to injury, the 10A which is supposed to replace the 11 is advertised as extending hourly to Blackhall Mill, yet on a number of occasions the time between buses is up to 75 minutes. This means that instead of having to wait 10 minutes for a bus, I will now have to wait over an hour.
And I know that I am not alone.
I acknowledge that the 11 is not always as busy as you would like it to be, but particular at peak times the service attracts a very healthy number of passengers (I invite you to ride it) so therefore would it not be possible to keep the 11 in some form so that passengers aren't left without a bus for more than an hour (when the previous frequency was twice an hour) or improve the offering of the 10A so passengers can at least cling on to some sort of service.
Usually I'm very supportive of the decisions you make and I do praise your service, but I just think that this is a step too far.
Thank You in anticipation of your response.
(27 Jul 2016, 9:18 pm)Tom wrote [ -> ]Yeah it's a stupid idea having Solos on the 42.
Wonder what the effects are of the 11 being withdrawn on the 47 too? It was busy enough to start off with so with the withdrawal of the 11 it will be even busier too.
(27 Jul 2016, 9:30 pm)South Tyne Lad wrote [ -> ]I feel for residents in High Spen mostly, Had there Evening service 47 withdrawn only a few months ago and have now had their Daytime service cut to Hourly on a slower route.
I also feel that Nexus and GNE also underestimated how many people use the supported section between Greenside and Blackhall Mill, There always was a healthy load when I used it over the few years it ran.
One of very few places in Tyne and Wear that's had their services significantly cut, Not improved.
(27 Jul 2016, 9:53 pm)S813 FVK wrote [ -> ]The 47 needs to go via High Spen to go through Highfield before rejoining the A694 at Rowlands Gill. The change was that they would stop serving High Spen Bus Stand, not High Spen in general.
What should be taken into consideration regarding the 10A extension is that, in return for the frequency being doubled, Go North East allocate deckers to the replacement service meaning that 2 buses worth of passengers can be put onto 1. I took this view when the 43/44 was replaced by the 6 - souble the frequency but twice as many seats in return.
(27 Jul 2016, 10:12 pm)biglugs@yahoo.com wrote [ -> ]But if a mpd turns up alike 553 or a Venture which has happened so nothing stopping a mpd or solo appearing on the10A although from your point of 1 bus fitting 2 loads it wouldn't really work as in the 6s case 547 has turned up on journeys and that's smaller than the old citaros on the route.
The extension to Castleside with bigger buses could be Queried to
(27 Jul 2016, 9:42 pm)Jackamcardle wrote [ -> ]I am in the area and use it regularly, and the passenger loads are very hit and miss. I've never seen it so busy in the last few weeks of its existence.
(27 Jul 2016, 9:53 pm)S813 FVK wrote [ -> ]The 47 needs to go via High Spen to go through Highfield before rejoining the A694 at Rowlands Gill. The change was that they would stop serving High Spen Bus Stand, not High Spen in general.
What should be taken into consideration regarding the 10A extension is that, in return for the frequency being doubled, Go North East allocate deckers to the replacement service meaning that 2 buses worth of passengers can be put onto 1. I took this view when the 43/44 was replaced by the 6 - souble the frequency but twice as many seats in return.
(27 Jul 2016, 10:37 pm)South Tyne Lad wrote [ -> ]But is having a double decker with a reduced frequency better for passengers? Id rather have a half-Hourly frequency with a Single Decker which is what these people are petitioning to have back.
(27 Jul 2016, 10:37 pm)South Tyne Lad wrote [ -> ]Was very busy when I had 4930 on the last day of its existence
But is having a double decker with a reduced frequency better for passengers? Id rather have a half-Hourly frequency with a Single Decker which is what these people are petitioning to have back.
(27 Jul 2016, 11:06 pm)S813 FVK wrote [ -> ]No matter what changes they make to any service the company operates, they are not going to be able to please everybody. If people actually used the service, it wouldn't have been withdrawn. The 1 or 2 journeys that you and other enthusiasts have been on is not an overall representation of the services performance, instead it shows that some journeys are busier than others which is something that applies to most services.
(27 Jul 2016, 11:04 pm)Ambassador wrote [ -> ]I suppose it all comes down to the reality of supply and demand and GNE being a business as opposed to a service provider.
If the demand was there, they'd supply more buses, they either aren't making enough money (understandable) or aren't making as much as they'd like (very different but understandable) in that area.
Historically the area has never had a fantastic bus service and like Kibblesworth it's one of those things that the majority are car owners and GNE can't compete with that.
(27 Jul 2016, 11:07 pm)Tom wrote [ -> ]And the 10A takes forever I think that was one of the main complaints that there wasn't a fast bus into Newcastle from the likes of Greenside and Ryton anymore. I agree though I'd rather have a 30 min frequency on a single decker than a 60 min frequency on a double decker.
(27 Jul 2016, 5:28 pm)MVK 500R wrote [ -> ]So much for improving reliability, the 41 is a no show from Wallsend Metro
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