(18 Jun 2014, 10:59 pm)RCN 699 wrote Why does the Toon Link service need deckers? Surely Citaros or Versas are perfectly adequate. Also another priority should be to make all 35 service vehicles into Citaros. I agree that the vehicles on the Pronto service are horrible and need replacing. The ten minute service does not work. The X1 and 56 always have buses following each other and quite often they are empty. Again it is overkill with deckers.
Are all Streetlites like 5345? It was making horrendous rattling noises towards the back of the vehicle the other day.
There are a number of times during the day where double decked vehicles can be justified due to overcrowding - this is also the case on Laser service 35 and Prince Bishops service 20. Single decked vehicles would be adequate for a large proportion of the day, but if it means you're leaving customers behind during those peak periods of high passenger numbers, it's no good!
I don't think it's a major priority to ensure there is a full Citaro allocation on service 35 and I do think it is more likely that we will see replacement vehicles next year which will allow the current allocation to take up a new role within the fleet.
A streamlined ten minute frequency can and does work, but it depends on the nature of the service. It is very successful for Stagecoach due to the fact their routes are so much smaller in size, and never go too far from town. The likes of the Fab56 and Red Arrows are huge in comparison, and it's no wonder that there are often delays and vehicles running in pairs. I'm sure Go North East know all of the facts and figures, as double decker vehicles on a streamlined ten minute frequency wouldn't have been ordered if the figures didn't stack up.
Most of the Drifter Streetlites are in a bad way, which I'm reluctant to admit given that it will lead to all sorts of assumptions. I believe 5371 is the one which was re-engined after a month or two in service, and it sounds awful from outside of the vehicle - not as bad inside, but still sounds pretty bad in comparison to the others. There is one which has a loose panel or something at the back (presumably 5375 given your post), and yes, it rattles like hell. Almost as bad as the Pulsars on Arriva North East service 24.
Will be interesting to see how these light weight single deckers stack up on Arriva's premium product, Sapphire, providing that's still going ahead.