(08 Apr 2020, 10:30 pm)L469 YVK wrote Final suggestion. Will upload timetables and boards if able to..........
Arriva-X X19
- Will operate hourly between Newbiggin Cresswell Arms and Newcastle via Woodhorn, Wansbeck Hospital then the same route as service X20. Service X19 in conjunction with service X20, will offer a fast service up to every 30 mins during Mon-Sat daytimes
- Mon-Sat evening journeys will operate every 60 minutes until 21:13 ex Newcastle. Later journeys to North Seaton will be provided by service X21E departing Newcastle at 21:55 and 22:55.
- Sunday daytime journeys will run up to every 60 minutes until 18:40 ex Newcastle. Later journeys to North Seaton will be provided by service X21E departing Newcastle at 19:55 and 20:55.
Arriva-X X21 (PVR 12 but interworking with X19 Mon-Sat):
- Change of route between Bedlington and Newcastle with journeys running via the current X22 route instead of Nedderton Village.
- Mon-Sat daytime journeys will terminate at the Cresswell Arms in Newbiggin. Evening & Sunday journeys will continue to serve Seacrest Road.
- Every 15 mins Mon-Sat between Ashington and Newcastle as well as hourly to and from Newbiggin. There will also be increased running time to assist reliability (58 mins ex Ashington and 57 mins ex Newcastle but via Hartlands rather than Nedderton).
- Evening & Sunday journeys every 30 minutes between Ashington and Newcastle as well as hourly to and from Newbiggin. Extra running time on Sundays to improve reliability. Late evening journeys on Sundays will operate hourly.
- Journeys at 21:55 and 22:55 ex Newcastle Mon-Sat will operate as service X21E via Nedderton and continuing to North Seaton South Side after Ashington. Journeys at 19:55 and 20:55 ex Newcastle on Sundays will also operate as service X21E.
Arriva 20 (PVR 5) - In laymans terms, this will be Ashington's version of GNE's '6'. Deliberately not categorising this as an 'Express' although still limited stop between Seaton Burn Holiday Inn and Newcastle.
- Will operate via the current X22 route to Bedlington then the current X21 route to Newcastle.
- Mon-Sat daytime journeys will operate up to every 30 mins.
- Evening journeys will operate up to every 60 minutes until 20:45 ex Newcastle. Later journeys from Newcastle will be provided by service X21E with connections available in Bedlington and through fares available. Short journeys will depart from Bedlington to Ashington at 22:34 and 23:34.
- Sunday daytime journeys will operate up to every 60 minutes until 18:45 ex Newcastle. Later journeys from Newcastle will be provided by service X21E with connections available at Bedlington and through fares available. Short journeys will depart from Bedlington to Ashington at 20:34 and 21:34.
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Mon-Sat PVRs:
- X19/X21 = 12
- 20 = 5
Evening PVRs:
- 35 / X21 = 4
- X21 (Ashington & N.Seaton only) = 2
- 20 = 2 later reducing to 1
Sunday PVRs:
- 35 / X21 = 4
- X21 (Ashington and later N.Seaton only) = 2
- 20 / X19 = 5 (long layover in Ashington with new bus & driver sent out, interworking pattern will be 20 (Ash - Ncl) > X19 (Ncl - Nbig - Ncl) > 20 (Ncl - Ash).
The X19 did get me thinking though on how to change the Quorum Express (which mainly isn't express) and make it quicker for someso had the following idea to improve services based around your X19.
New X6 - This will replace parts of the X8, to speed up the X8 from Blyth and be partly your X19 as the following route:
Ashington -> Wansbeck Hospital -> Woodhorn -> Newbiggin -> *Express* -> East Sleekburn -> *Express* -> Bebside -> Shankhouse -> High Pit -> Annitsford -> *Express* -> Quorum -> *Express* -> Newcastle
This will run every 30 mins Mon - Sat and hourly evenings and Sundays. Due to this new service the X21 from Ashington to Newbiggin will no longer run and the 35 will only run hourly from North Seaton to Seacrest Gardens with the Woodburn extension scrapped as it's replaced with the X6 and the 52 peak time extension will no longer run with 1 peak service serving the ministry.
This route will give communities which currently don't have a bus at all East Sleekburn, a new bus from Moorland Avenue to Newcastle and a much quicker service for people from Newbiggin wanting to go to Newcastle and also a quicker service from Ashington which doesn't go around the world. Newbiggin will lose the link to Bedlington however but it's enough to change in Ashington.
X7 - Same as current but skips Burradon and also serves Tillmouth Avenue.
This will run every 30 mins Mon - Sat and hourly evenings and Sundays as now.
These changes will give a quicker service from Seaton Valley to Newcastle and restore Holywell with a bus to Newcastle.
X8 - Same as current to Blyth Asda which then run -> *Express* -> Eastfield -> Manor Walks -> Dudley -> Burradon -> then current route.
This will run every 30 mins Mon - Sat and hourly evenings and Sundays as now.
These changes give a quicker service from Cowpen to Newcastle without having to travel around the world such as Bebside and around High Pit and Annitsford.
Overall the buses will increase the service between Newcastle and Quorum to every 10 minutes and 20 minutes evenings and Sunday with quicker buses from the distant areas. Burradon will decrease from every 15 minutes to every 30 minutes however there's enough buses through there plus the 52 aswell.
The X6 to Cobalt will be renumbered to something else.
The PVR's of the new services will be:
X6: 5 (Single Deckers)
X7/X8/X9: 14 (Same as now - Double / Single Deckers)
X21: -1
35: -1
X6 Route: https://goo.gl/maps/Sy7DisQzfqvFniuK7
X7 Route: https://goo.gl/maps/t18a6UDbZiMnpMKS9
X8 Route: https://goo.gl/maps/hDehHAun2xCq2jAj9