(17 Sep 2013, 4:11 pm)fozzovmurton wrote Did GNE not once run a Durham-Sunderland-South Shields service about 15 years ago, I'm sure it was the X20, I am sure the Durham-Shields service was X20 and X50 with the X20 going to Sunderland and the X50 being what is todays 50 running half hourly combined between Durham and Shields...I'm thinking late 90's when I was living in Durham
Interesting, I would love to see better connections with Newcastle coming through Murton, but would it be worth a half hourly service, I'm not so sure, but in my mind I was thinking something like extend 1 X1 an hour to Dalton Park splitting off at Hetton, leaving Easington Lane with a 12 minute service. Other ideas I had are probably not so good, extend the Newcastle bound X3 or X36 to Dalton Park running limited stop between Park Lane and Dalton Park or a new East Durham Run Service
Murton-Dalton Park-Seaham-Seaton Lane-A19-Heworth-Gateshead-Newcastle 1p/h
I think the best Murton can hope for would be better bus links going into Dalton Park, demand rising once Phase 2 is built and the best we would ever probably get if demand is there and then it would be probably one X7 or one X9 or X10 per hour.
The old argument of good connections already comes up, East Durham is well connected to Newcastle,
202/265 half hourly combined to Easington Lane/Hetton
60 every 10 minutes Seaham-Sunderland
61 every 15 minutes Murton-Sunderland
Both Easington Lane/Hetton and Sunderland see a regular service to Newcastle and that seems to be GNE's justification for not putting on services between Seaham/Murton to Newcastle
Yeah, but the X4 wouldn't just provide links for Seaham/Murton, it would provide a faster, express from Newcastle to Washington. Not sure if a direct Newcastle-Washington service, omitting Gateshead would be more beneficial?