(30 Oct 2022, 10:54 pm)peter wrote You would hope Arriva will take the opportunity to rationalise everything really. They could have quite a streamlined operation going. 

If they got an order of 8-10 MMC's for the X10/X11, displaying the MAX Pulsars to Durham to replace the ALX400's then you could have the following:

Blyth
X7/X8/X9 - DB300's 
X10/X11 - MMC's
306/308 - DB300's 
51/52/53/54/55 - Streetlites 

Ashington
X14/15/18/20 - MMC's
X21/22 - MMC's 
1/2 - Pulsars
43/44/45 - E400's
35 - E400's 
57/57A - Solo's
553 - Solo's
555 - Solo's
685 - Pulsars

This of course assumes that no other services get binned. If there wasn't room at Blyth, you could even move the X10/11 to Ashington with the other MMC services (which I swear was rumoured at one point). That way you're keeping common fleets together. You'd need 1579/80 from Durham to have enough Streetlites, and admittedly you'd probs also have to have E400's as spares at Blyth (tho ideally you'd get 7618/19/26/27 back from Yorkshire in exchange for 7557/8/60/62 though that's probably not that likely - 7609/10 would also be displaced back to Blyth from the Whitby Park and Ride).

If they really had the funds they could get 20 MMC's for the 306-308. Then 10 DB300's could go on the 43/44/45 displacing the 57 plate Enviro's (7501-7507/9 + 7522) to Durham to replace the 55-reg ALX's. The 10 MAX Pulsars could be used for other displacements (Centro's perhaps)

There's only space for 14 singles in the new Blyth plans so that wouldn't work.

Can't see any investment in the 306/308 though it's not due until 2026 and Arriva don't withdraw buses early or displace them either unless they're knackered. Personally I have a feeling the X7/(X8)/X9 will be the routes that get the investment (don't think the X8 will exist as it is) because of the train line and they're the routes which will be impacted the most.

Not to mention they're allocated (on paper) the oldest Deckers, 7601 - 7608 which were originally bought for them hence them being branded in them all their life.

7501 - 7517 need put into a spare role though or withdrawn completely, they're all wrecked. They definitely shouldn't be replacing the ALX's (they'll be replaced by London cascades imo).

It's the Solo's that need to go though as they're junk at both Ashington and Durham.