(16 Aug 2019, 8:16 pm)S830OFT wrote

I think that's the demonstrator for the 53/54/58...

Is it a loan from go-ahead London then?

(16 Aug 2019, 8:38 pm)JM03 wrote

Is it a loan from go-ahead London then?

No. It's an Optare demonstrator model, although after Go North East it's likely that it's going to spend much of its life in London for trials.

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6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

(16 Aug 2019, 8:46 pm)S813 FVK wrote

6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

That looks stunning

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(16 Aug 2019, 8:38 pm)Dan wrote As have 6101 and 6103. As mentioned previously, 6933 is on loan to Percy Main to cover for the ones away for vinyl fitting.

6113, 6104 and 6105 planned for fitting next week.

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Strangely enough I haven't seen 6933 on the 309 given i'm now working up the Cobalt, has 6100 gone for refurb as it has been over a week since I last seen it?

(16 Aug 2019, 8:46 pm)S813 FVK wrote

6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

That looks really good

(16 Aug 2019, 8:46 pm)S813 FVK wrote

6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

Shucks - cat let out of the bag!

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(16 Aug 2019, 8:46 pm)S813 FVK wrote

6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

Appreciate I'm being facicious - but to the lay person at least... Who is the operator?

It's barely noticeable and in with it spending a significant part of its route, in areas dominated by other operators, I'd have thought the idea would have been to push more than a fancy livery.

Regardless of its key role in supplementing the 21.

(16 Aug 2019, 8:49 pm)Malarkey wrote

That looks stunning

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Strangely enough I haven't seen 6933 on the 309 given i'm now working up the Cobalt, has 6100 gone for refurb as it has been over a week since I last seen it?

It may have been on service 310. With the exception of Sunday daytimes, only a very small number of 309 / 310 / X39 boards interwork. The majority are standalone.

(16 Aug 2019, 8:46 pm)S813 FVK wrote

6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

I don't know if it'll look better in person, but my god that looks hideous in the pictures!

(16 Aug 2019, 9:18 pm)L469 YVK wrote

It may have been on service 310. With the exception of Sunday daytimes, only a very small number of 309 / 310 / X39 boards interwork. The majority are standalone.

It was on the 11 today.

(16 Aug 2019, 8:46 pm)S813 FVK wrote

6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

Looks very smart. Although think will look better on new Streetdecks with glass staircase

(16 Aug 2019, 9:35 pm)JP6004 wrote

Looks very smart. Although think will look better on new Streetdecks with glass staircase

I personally think the design looks a bit better without the glass staircase. It just seems to flow a bit better IMO.

I also don't like the placement of the fleet number right above the wheel arch, it look very out of place

(16 Aug 2019, 9:39 pm)streetdeckfan wrote

I personally think the design looks a bit better without the glass staircase. It just seems to flow a bit better IMO.

I also don't like the placement of the fleet number right above the wheel arch, it look very out of place

Yes does look odd

(16 Aug 2019, 9:39 pm)streetdeckfan wrote

I also don't like the placement of the fleet number right above the wheel arch, it look very out of place

Overall looks good, imagine will be even better in daylight rather than under those harsh workshop lights too. But yes that fleet number looks awful, spacing's all wrong, it should be at the front under the cab window.

Also ever since the logo was first revealed I've thought it looked more like '// lines' than X lines, because the other line that's meant to form the X is so thin...

(16 Aug 2019, 9:50 pm)JP6004 wrote

Yes does look odd

Hopefully it'll just be temporary!

I wonder if they'll be adding bins to the X21s when they're doing the repaint, I've been bringing it up with them for literally years, and they put them on the Angel, but the X21 has a major problem with litter being scattered everywhere

(16 Aug 2019, 8:46 pm)S813 FVK wrote

6304 now in X-lines branding for service X21

that was quick!

(16 Aug 2019, 11:38 pm)BusLoverMum wrote

that was quick!

I know, I honestly wasn't expecting them to start changing them over yet.

I wonder when it'll be out so I can see it in person. I'm hoping it'll look better than in the photo

Fleet number placement is no different to other of Ray's designs using similar colours (light blue on dark blue as the example below)

As x21 is being rebranded from Castles Express to Xlines, will that mean the Castles day and weekly saver tickets will be abolished?

(17 Aug 2019, 7:28 am)big mac wrote As x21 is being rebranded from Castles Express to Xlines, will that mean the Castles day and weekly saver tickets will be abolished?

I would doubt they will, rename maybe

(16 Aug 2019, 9:13 pm)Andreos1 wrote

Appreciate I'm being facicious - but to the lay person at least... Who is the operator?

It's barely noticeable and in with it spending a significant part of its route, in areas dominated by other operators, I'd have thought the idea would have been to push more than a fancy livery.

Regardless of its key role in supplementing the 21.

Completely agree here, though its another one of the Best Impressions standard features.

Not too long ago we were discussing the reasons for the logo positional swap on the Cobalt B9s and, if I have remembered correctly, it had something to do with wanting to focus on the Go North East name just as much as the brand, if not more. The X-Lines brand seems to do the exact opposite.

Seen the 21.25 X30 depart on Wednesday night, loads seemed good for a single decker.

With the new buses coming will the 16A/X30 still interwork if so what will they be allocated Durham diamond branded streetlites or the new streetdeck?

Has anymore buses been fitted with the system to upgrade them to euro 6?

Haven't heard anything else since the TEN B9's were completed.

(17 Aug 2019, 11:23 am)S813 FVK wrote

Completely agree here, though its another one of the Best Impressions standard features.

Not too long ago we were discussing the reasons for the logo positional swap on the Cobalt B9s and, if I have remembered correctly, it had something to do with wanting to focus on the Go North East name just as much as the brand, if not more. The X-Lines brand seems to do the exact opposite.

Yeah, vaguely remember reading the comments at the time. Can't remember what was said at the time, but I do remember the emphasis on the larger logo.

This brand seems to have blown that out of the window.

Consistency? What consistency?

Different sized logos, different coloured radiator grills. Anything else I've missed?

(17 Aug 2019, 5:54 pm)Andreos1 wrote

Yeah, vaguely remember reading the comments at the time. Can't remember what was said at the time, but I do remember the emphasis on the larger logo.

This brand seems to have blown that out of the window.

Consistency? What consistency?

Different sized logos, different coloured radiator grills. Anything else I've missed?

It seems like at the minute they don't know what they're doing with the branding.

Even those with the same branding are seemingly coming back with small changes every time.

Especially the new corporate ones.

(17 Aug 2019, 5:54 pm)Andreos1 wrote

Yeah, vaguely remember reading the comments at the time. Can't remember what was said at the time, but I do remember the emphasis on the larger logo.

This brand seems to have blown that out of the window.

Consistency? What consistency?

Different sized logos, different coloured radiator grills. Anything else I've missed?

It's a strange one. I think the Xlines brand is a million times better than anything we've seen from GNE in a long time, but they should be loud and proud that it is a Go North East product. It seems to almost be a Stenning trademark to do so...

When the X-Lines livery was first revealed I thought it was a little odd that the gold was towards the front, and the colour unique to the route was at the back. I would have thought the colour unique to the route would be at the front, so as the bus approaches from a distance you have an idea if its the one you're after. Similarly if theres a line of buses on stand at a bus station, surely the unique colour at the front would be more useful than just being able to see a line of gold buses, right?

And if we're being picky, how come the ToonTour's 2 sloping corporate lines point backwards like the X-Lines livery, rather than point forwards like the corporate & non X-Lines liveries?   ;-)

(17 Aug 2019, 8:03 pm)ne14ne1 wrote

When the X-Lines livery was first revealed I thought it was a little odd that the gold was towards the front, and the colour unique to the route was at the back. I would have thought the colour unique to the route would be at the front, so as the bus approaches from a distance you have an idea if its the one you're after. Similarly if theres a line of buses on stand at a bus station, surely the unique colour at the front would be more useful than just being able to see a line of gold buses, right?

And if we're being picky, how come the ToonTour's 2 sloping corporate lines point backwards like the X-Lines livery, rather than point forwards like the corporate & non X-Lines liveries?   ;-)

That was one of the great things about the past route branding, you could tell what bus it was by the colour. Especially in places like Durham Bus Station where you physically can't see the destination on the front of the bus because they're above the windows.

That was of course until they had the bright idea of putting the north and southbound X21s right next to each other, especially when the driver has the wrong destination on the screen as they pull up. I've got on the X21 with Bishop on the display, only for the driver to change it once I've got on and it to go to Newcastle

Is there a vector drawing of the X21 livery yet? The one currently doesn't show much!