(11 Jan 2015, 6:39 pm)Dan wrote Did you read this post? My guess is that Arriva's upgrades won't harm the X21 too much...

Until Arriva offer more competitive fares and later journeys, I don't think power sockets and Wi-Fi will attract too many passengers away from the X21. 

I did indeed, and I would hazard a guess that you'll be correct as end to end passengers are always going to go with a direct service, passengers between Bishop Auckland & Durham may think about switching though if a superior service is offered.
Of course for regular commuters, the service which offers the most flexibility (and more importantly, price) will always win.

It's interesting to find there is a £5 difference between similar offerings between the Wear Valley area & Newcastle though, with the weekly Pronto saver priced at £22.50 as opposed to Arriva's offering at £17.40. GNE will always win the battle between Durham & Newcastle based on frequency alone, never mind the numerous connections available such as Metrocentre's regular shuttle buses. However the prices are fairly competitive with the Arriva weekly at £17.40 and GNE's Angel saver just £17.00. The connections required at each end of the region would depend on which one the passengers would purchase I would suggest as nobody (or not many) would realistically just travel from Durham Bus Station to Eldon Square and back each day.