once an hour: Seaham, Houghton, Fencehouses, Lumley, Chester, Birtley, Team Valley, Newcastle.
once an hour: Seaham, Dalton Park, Hetton, Houghton, Fencehouses, Lumley, Chester, Birtley, Team Valley, Gateshead Interchange.
Numbers crossing the county border are poor - those on the Durham side use Chester as a hub. Houghton or Washington on the other side.
However, the 71 does provide a link between Houghton and Chester, which is used (although not as much as it could be or was on the 21a).
If the services end points were extended, new links would be opened up and through passengers would add to the short hop passengers.
(02 Jul 2014, 12:49 pm)AdamY wrote Although you're probably right about there being no-need to link Saltwell Road with Birtley or Ouston, the link could still be kept using a variant on your suggestion. I don't know your reasoning behind sending the bus up to the Gold Medal and back again as the roundabout just outside of Sainsburys could be feasibly used for turning the bus around. Instead of having the bus run the full length along Kingsway to Lobley Hill Road, it could be rerouted via Western Avenue back onto Saltwell Road South and Saltwell Road. This would more or less keep all the links already there and have the added advantage of providing a new-link between Saltwell Road and Team Valley Retail World.
Western Ave doesn't lead to Saltwell Rd. Which way would you have it run?
Smithy Lane would work - turn left at Allerdene shops towards the Gold Medal from Kibblesworth; Gold Medal; Sainsburys; Retail World; Eastern Ave (not sure if it has weight restriction) and pick up route from Saltwell Road.