(10 Jun 2019, 9:18 pm)Venturego wrote

Beach Boys 99 opinions, although possibly well intended, I feel are wrong and now, outdated. Some GNE route branding can be very impactful, effective, or in some cases quite amateurish! - One thing they do lack is promotion of a Corporate image, and therefore can be viewed by visitors to the region or casual users as a collection of independent operators lacking the many advantages of an integrated network(for ease of ticketing and travel opportunities)

The Industry as a whole in the North East needs an even more integrated network, linking N.W. Durham (Stanley, Consett etc.. into the extended Nexus Zones integrated with Metro etc...,

Service 6 could be re-branded as Newcastle Diamond (linking at Stanley with previous full Diamond service, now Durham Diamond) or may be bring back Swift, or Magpie (tenuous link to Newcastle, but image as the bird linking it to "Diamond (Tenuously)" but also linking similarly to Rd Kite which also serves N.W. Durham (Consett in this case).

Overall a more Corporate identity is welcome tp promote further future integration, not only within GNE, but also with integrated multi modal options with Metro & local trains

To me the range of liveries is their identity, it helps them stand out against the 'boring' liveries that both Arriva and Stagecoach have. Sure, having every route branded probably isn't a good idea, but having a 'flagship' route or two in each area seems good to me. The longer routes in particular I think should have their own dedicated route branding, like Tyne Valley Ten (which I personally hate the look of as it just reminds me of children's TV), The Castles Express, The Angel, X9/X10, The Crusader, 56 (but with some half decent branding)

I like the concept of XLines, having one brand for all the express routes, but I feel like if they take away all the branding then they just become another bus company. What I wouldn't be against would be having XLines for the run of the mill express routes, but then having the 'flagship' routes still independently branded as they are now, maybe having them as a sub brand under Xlines, so maybe 'Castles Express by XLines'. But at that point, you're dealing with sub brands under sub brands. I can only imagine what the NSA would say! "This is the Castles Express Xlines X21 service to Bishop Auckland and Tindale Crescent"

I agree with you on the better integration, what I'd love is if there was a single ticketing scheme shared between all operators in the North East (so have Nexus take over County Durham and Northumberland as well), similar to what they have in London. If we have to have each operator have their own area, then at least make it easy to travel between them. I travel between Gateshead and Bishop using my GNE pass, but if I want to go in any of the surrounding areas, I have to buy an Arriva ticket. It would be so much easier if County Durham was included in the Network one area