Why don't they just do the following and sod the 'easy peazy 10 minute frequency' shite:

- Sapphire X31 every 30 mins Monday to Saturday / 60 minutes evenings and Sundays serving: Current X21 route from Newbiggin to Bedlington Red Lion then current X22 route from there to Newcastle.

- Sapphire X32 every 30 minutes Monday to Saturday serving: Newbiggin Cresswell Arms and Seacrest Road, North Seaton Fairfield Drive / NSC, Ashington Bus Station then same route as X31 to Newcastle.

- MAX+ X33 every 30 minutes Monday to Saturday / 60 minutes evenings and Sundays serving: X22 route to Glebe Road, then down to the roundabout next to the Red Lion then the current X21 route from there to Newcastle. Buses would serve all stops between Ashington and Seaton Burn Services then calling at Brunton Lane, Polwarth Drive and Regent Centre then only Gosforth High Street (Brandling Arms) with buses also serving Barras Bridge into Newcastle only. Evening and Sunday services would extend to North Seaton Demesne. The PVR for this service Monday to Saturday daytime would be 5 using the five not so good 57 plate E400s. Seats retrimmed to MAX specification and all NSA screens and announcements ripped out. Buses would still offer free Wi-Fi and power sockets.

- Sapphire X31 / X32 would combine to form a 15 minute frequency Monday to Saturday daytime from Newbiggin and between Ashington and Newcastle with all buses operating via Hartford Road between Bedlington and Newcastle. Only the Regent Centre and Gosforth High Street (Brandling Arms) would be served after Seaton Burn Services with buses also serving Barras Bridge into Newcastle only. During evenings and Sundays however, service X31 would also call at Brunton Lane and Polwarth Drive. The PVR for these two services would be 11 consisting of 7x 14 plate Enviro 400s, 1x 09 plate E400 and 3x of the best 57 plate E400s with the latter three being reconfigured to acccommodate a buggy bay. All Monday to Saturday daytime journeys would be driven by a team of dedicated Sapphire Drivers with good on time records (through legal driving and making an effort) and good customer care skills.

- During evenings and Sundays, services X31 and X33 would combine to give a bus approximately every 30 minutes from Ashington, Bedlington (either Glebe Road or Red Lion) and between A1068 / Plessey Woods and Newcastle. The combined PVR for services X31 / X33 and 35 would be 7 using 7522 - 7528. NSA's would be turned off on services X33 and 35. The interworking pattern from North Seaton would go X33 NCL, X31 NBIGG, 35 MOR, 35 NBIGG, X31 NCL, X33 NSEAT.

And yes, these services might not 'combine' (bar the X31 and X32) however, it's all down to brand perception. Remember that time I thought that the TEN was a faster option than Toon Link service 11 between the Tyne Valley / Ryton corridor and Newcastle? That was down to one thing and that's branding. If passengers want a fast service between Newcastle and Ashington, then they'd know to use the X20, X31 or X32 and if they needed the 'local links' along route, then they'd use the X33.