Well, I've also been and done some figures on the MPG based on the following.
Cobalt Clipper MPG on service 310 (plus X39 / occasional 309 workings):
Volvo B9TL: 6.5 MPG
Wright StreetDeck: 8 MPG
Castles Express MPG (plus X46 workings)
Volvo B9TL: 7.5MPG
Wright StreetDeck: 9 MPG
In terms of the above, the actual costings would work out as below.
Volvo B9TLs on Cobalt Clipper & Wright StreetDecks on Castles Express (Monday to Friday)
Volvo B9TL @ 1249 Miles = £1164.02
Wright StreetDeck @ 1135.62 Miles + BSOG = £595.90
Wright StreetDecks on Cobalt Clipper & Volvo B9TLs on Castles Express (Monday to Friday)
Wright StreetDeck @ 1249 Miles + BSOG = £752.39
Volvo B9TL @ 1135.62 Miles = £793.74
The total saving for one days work (Monday to Friday timetable) including BSOG would come in at £213.79. Multiply that by five and that would come in at £1068.95. And if the Saturday and Sunday journeys were also taken into account, the savings would probably be even more. That alone would most likely cover the wages of the extra few drivers that would be needed if the 309 / 310 were to run standalone most of the time plus other costs. Would be a win win situation with passengers on the Castles Express benefiting from better reliability and passengers on the Cobalt Clipper also benefiting from improved reliability as well as extra journeys during the evenings too.
RE: Go North East: Upcoming Service Changes v2