(03 Aug 2014, 8:59 pm)Dan wrote Blyth do a very good job of keeping buses on-time from the Blyth end, so I'm guessing if the 308 didn't arrive in on time, they'd get whichever bus is in the depot and put it on the 308 stand so that it can depart on time - even if this does mean a branded vehicle is going to go out on a service which it shouldn't, causing customer confusion, etc etc...
Clearly, the issue lies at the Newcastle end. Drivers are faced with an awful predicament whereby they have to get out of the cab to ring control, alerting them that they're late, and seek guidance as to whether they should be regulated or not (making customers even more annoyed in the process - with a telephone call taking more time than something over the radio would) - or be put under pressure to try and make up time. I'd hope that drivers wouldn't self-regulate.
Despite them getting a seven minute layover at Haymarket, they still can't depart on time! The issue is they sometimes have to wait until the stand frees up, and the traffic around Haymarket is quite bad.
A lot of passengers seem to use the 309/310 as opposed to the 306/308 - not sure if this is due to the added perks, or cheaper day/weekly prices. I just use whatever bus comes on Battle Hill Drive, and for some reason it's always the 58! And that never seems to stop as much (oddly passengers let it go) so suits me fine!