(08 Dec 2017, 8:20 pm)L469 YVK wrote Although the Streetdecks have shown some problems on the X21, they should be more than suitable for the 21 given that the B5LH's haven't done too badly on there and are even getting cascaded to the Coaster.

Big difference between the X21 and the 21 is that the 21 is basically a stop start route particularly between Chester-Le-Street and Newcastle whereas the X21 has a section of Motorway / Dual Carriageway to contend with as well as an extra 10-12 mile also with some fast sections of road.

Whether GNE stick with Wrightbus depends on how the B5TLs perform on the X9/X10. If they perform to the same if not a better standard than the B9TLs did on there, then there would be no reason for GNE to switch to ADL whatsoever.

In fact, if GNE and some other operators (First, Arriva) wanted to stick with Wrightbus but weren't happy about the lack of suitable buses for some of the routes, Wrightbus might even offer an 'endurance' version of the StreetDeck / StreetLite with a Cummins 6.7l / ZF combo in addition to the current offerings.