If it's anything like our procurement, I'd guess a number of options would have been presented to the Executive. One of course would have included what's now becoming the standard onboard features - i.e.. WiFi, Plug Sockets, and NSAs. That'll then most likely have to be justified against the type of service the buses are being used on, but lets be honest, it's nothing more than a shuttle service between one Interchange and another. People aren't going to be on the bus long enough to make use of such features. I'd understand (and agree) with the gripe if this were the case for the 8.

Spot on!
Icomera has undertaken market research and they suggested that most customers will not use free Wi-Fi available on-board if travelling for 10 minutes or less, as is the case with the X66.

I personally think that the Streetlites will be on the X66 for at least seven years, by which time they should receive a mid-life refurbishment, and this is when the vehicles would be retrofitted with power sockets and Next Stop Announcements. The Wi-Fi can be retrofitted at any point we like without incurring too great a cost, but I'd argue that there are other buses/services out there that would benefit from free Wi-Fi before the X66.

It doesn't matter if the blue reinforces it, it looks absolute hideous, and the interior is shocking

Having looked at the photos on a computer screen, I have to agree that the shade of blue on the internal walls looks a bit out of place. I had assumed based on my phone screen, that it was the same shade of blue that we see at present, but it looks a lot lighter. May just be the lighting on the photo though, as it almost looks like a teal colour on the headrest shot. The back internal wall and the cab look yet another shade of blue. 

I'll have to see for myself, but it doesn't look colour coordinated to me from what I've seen so far.

I do however compliment the flooring. Looks identical to what was on the Citaro demonstrator, and the red stitching on the eLeather is also a nice effective touch.

I'm not sure if I like the interior on that StreetLite or not.

I'll wait until I can view one in the flesh to give my verdict.

Having looked at the photos on a computer screen, I have to agree that the shade of blue on the internal walls looks a bit out of place. I had assumed based on my phone screen, that it was the same shade of blue that we see at present, but it looks a lot lighter. May just be the lighting on the photo though, as it almost looks like a teal colour on the headrest shot. The back internal wall and the cab look yet another shade of blue. 

I'll have to see for myself, but it doesn't look colour coordinated to me from what I've seen so far.

I do however compliment the flooring. Looks identical to what was on the Citaro demonstrator, and the red stitching on the eLeather is also a nice effective touch.

There are indeed two shades of blue - everything on the interior is the same shade of blue as present minus the internal walls which are a lighter blue. I'm not entirely sure why the colour looks so distorted on the headrest shot, but there was very little light in the vehicle due to it being parked alongside the three withdrawn Scania L94UA/Wright Solar Fusions. Of course there are quite a few trees outside of the depot, so even if the artics weren't parked there, there was very little chance of light coming through. I was also using my old Point & Shoot (which didn't help matters) so I didn't have to traipse back and forth from Bensham every day this week with a DSLR!

I'm personally not keen on the colour of the internal walls, but everything else looks spot on.

There are indeed two shades of blue - everything on the interior is the same shade of blue as present minus the internal walls which are a lighter blue. I'm not entirely sure why the colour looks so distorted on the headrest shot, but there was very little light in the vehicle due to it being parked alongside the three withdrawn Scania L94UA/Wright Solar Fusions. Of course there are quite a few trees outside of the depot, so there was very little chance of light coming through. I was also using my old Point & Shoot so I didn't have to traipse back and forth from Bensham every day this week with a DSLR!

I'm personally not keen on the colour of the internal walls, but everything else looks spot on.

I'd agree with that statement. I noticed your photo description about the blue accent lighting. Just need tinted windows and some sub woofers in the boot now  in all seriousness though, it's another simple but effective touch! 

Will the rest come in batches now?

Looking forward to seen what colour the 8/8A/78/78A will arrive as....

I'd agree with that statement. I noticed your photo description about the blue accent lighting. Just need tinted windows and some sub woofers in the boot now  in all seriousness though, it's another simple but effective touch! 

The majority of the internal features follow on from direct trials. In this instance, 5245 was extensively refurbished last year which included additional LED lighting up the gangway, as shown below:
Go North East: 5245 / NK56KHP by danielgrahamm, on Flickr

This feature comes at an additional cost, as you can well imagine, but provides greater lighting when the bus is dark at night. This should help reduce passengers falling over and potentially hurting themselves - the benefits outweigh the initial cost!

I'm looking forward to riding one of these on my next Explorer trip, any ideas on the dates of when these enter service?

Also would there be a launch for the new buses like Stagecoach and Arriva do?

I'm looking forward to riding one of these on my next Explorer trip, any ideas on the dates of when these enter service?

Also would there be a launch for the new buses like Stagecoach and Arriva do?

They'll be launched into service in a couple of weeks' time. Go North East usually do various publicity launches prior to new vehicles entering service - nothing quite as extravagant as Titan, but often some fun to be had and some good photo opportunities for enthusiasts. May get your hands on some Go North East goodies - sweets, chocolate, frisbies, scratchcards (to win free travel) and suchlike have been handed out in the past.

They'll be launched into service in a couple of weeks' time. Go North East usually do various publicity launches prior to new vehicles entering service - nothing quite as extravagant as Titan, but often some fun to be had and some good photo opportunities for enthusiasts. May get your hands on some Go North East goodies - sweets, chocolate, frisbies, scratchcards (to win free travel) and suchlike have been handed out in the past.

Yeah, that sounds good
Might try and get to the launch (if they're doing it)

I'm not too keen on the walls as other people have said, but I'm not too sure about the red stitching on the seats either?  It seems quite out of place.

I just love it on here like...art critics galore. If I remember the same was said about the green Streetlites that came last year....until they got branded.

Should maybe get the critical folks to do the following.

A) Order new buses (having completed the necessary criteria, elimination of other vehicles and finalised everything)
B) Train the staff to drive them (something which costs more money, half of an hour's pay I believe)
C) Brand them (which will mean bringing outside contractors in to put the vinyls on, more money)
D) Put them in service (which, yet again, can be hard if there is a fault or not all of them have arrived by a specific date)
E) Handle the predictable complaints that will come forward from the general public complaining about smaller buses being used on such a service as the X66.

Not easy, is it? The buses may not be too appealing, personally I think the one shown in Dan's photos is fantastic, but it's a bus that will likely transport you from A to B in the future. Be grateful for that, if not for its appearance.

To add further information, the four Streetlites which will be allocated to service X66 are numbered 5390 - 5394. These vehicles are of a lower specification than the remainder of the batch, and are not equipped with free Wi-Fi, power sockets, Next Stop Announcements or high backed seating. They are, however, fitted with white destination displays and two-colour Tarabus Wood effect flooring. A few photographs taken at the back of Saltmeadows following arrival today:

Go North East: 5392 / NK15EMX by danielgrahamm, on Flickr
Go North East: 5392 / NK15EMX by danielgrahamm, on Flickr
Go North East: 5392 / NK15EMX by danielgrahamm, on Flickr
Go North East: 5392 / NK15EMX by danielgrahamm, on Flickr
Go North East: 5392 / NK15EMX by danielgrahamm, on Flickr

nice color a nice midnight blue nice leather seats question is when are they due out in service? and branded?

nice color a nice midnight blue nice leather seats question is when are they due out in service? and branded?

Over the coming weeks.

They'll be launched into service in a couple of weeks' time. Go North East usually do various publicity launches prior to new vehicles entering service - nothing quite as extravagant as Titan, but often some fun to be had and some good photo opportunities for enthusiasts. May get your hands on some Go North East goodies - sweets, chocolate, frisbies, scratchcards (to win free travel) and suchlike have been handed out in the past.

I just love it on here like...art critics galore. If I remember the same was said about the green Streetlites that came last year....until they got branded.

Don't mention the Arriva Max Omnicitys, oh my god is everyone on here studying interior design or something?

Should maybe get the critical folks to do the following.

A) Order new buses (having completed the necessary criteria, elimination of other vehicles and finalised everything)
B) Train the staff to drive them (something which costs more money, half of an hour's pay I believe)
C) Brand them (which will mean bringing outside contractors in to put the vinyls on, more money)
D) Put them in service (which, yet again, can be hard if there is a fault or not all of them have arrived by a specific date)
E) Handle the predictable complaints that will come forward from the general public complaining about smaller buses being used on such a service as the X66.

Not easy, is it? The buses may not be too appealing, personally I think the one shown in Dan's photos is fantastic, but it's a bus that will likely transport you from A to B in the future. Be grateful for that, if not for its appearance.

Everyone has different tastes, so they will comment accordingly. It'd be a boring world if we all agreed with each other and shared the same tastes. I don't get why that means they should do anything that you've listed? Feedback is a valuable tool to any company, and it should be taken for what it is. 

I personally think it looks great, and has some nice touches (e.g. red stitching and accent lighting), but I don't think the interior wall panelling matches the rest of the (very smart) interior. I'm hardly going to say it does just to score a few brownie points. 

I said previously that I'll see for myself... I may change my opinion, but on the other hand I might not. Whoopdee-do!

Should maybe get the critical folks to do the following.

A) Order new buses (having completed the necessary criteria, elimination of other vehicles and finalised everything)
B) Train the staff to drive them (something which costs more money, half of an hour's pay I believe)
C) Brand them (which will mean bringing outside contractors in to put the vinyls on, more money)
D) Put them in service (which, yet again, can be hard if there is a fault or not all of them have arrived by a specific date)
E) Handle the predictable complaints that will come forward from the general public complaining about smaller buses being used on such a service as the X66.

Not easy, is it? The buses may not be too appealing, personally I think the one shown in Dan's photos is fantastic, but it's a bus that will likely transport you from A to B in the future. Be grateful for that, if not for its appearance.

Should add:
F) listen to all of us complain that we dont like the colour of them after you've spent millions on them.

Apologies if this has already been covered previously, but is there any reason for the switch from the fabric "Go" moquette, to the e-leather, apart from the ease of the cleaning process? 

The "Go" covering looks nicer in my opinion, not just against compared to the seating in the new Streetlites, but to all e-leather. 

Apologies if this has already been covered previously, but is there any reason for the switch from the fabric "Go" moquette, to the e-leather, apart from the ease of the cleaning process? 

The "Go" covering looks nicer in my opinion, not just against compared to the seating in the new Streetlites, but to all e-leather. 

That's the main reason, along with the customer conception of e-leather being a luxurious feature on-board buses.

It's amazing how much the e-leather has worn on ANE's Streetlites which entered service on the 23 in October 2014. I took a photo of the 'depth' of the e-leather trim on the 23 last week and compared it to the e-leather on the Go North East arrival today, and the latter was two to three times as thick.

Having looked at Dan's exclusive photos I have to say I agree with previous points raised...

- The light blue on the interior walls seems a bit out of place. Should have used the cream or darker blue. I was always taught 3 colours that link, not 4 or more.
- Liking the wood effect flooring, it looks good on the Tiger refurbs just done in Yorkshire and I really like it, always have done since Trent Barton  used it
- The dark blue looks bland and boring but then exterior liveries often look terrible until they're branded (like the MAX livery, looks awful until it's branded!)
- Any idea why there's 2 fuel filler caps? I get the left one is the adblue but then 2 fuel fillers?
- Cab layout is very good on these but the materials used make it look very cheap unfortunately!

That's the main reason, along with the customer conception of e-leather being a luxurious feature on-board buses.

It's amazing how much the e-leather has worn on ANE's Streetlites which entered service on the 23 in October 2014. I took a photo of the 'depth' of the e-leather trim on the 23 last week and compared it to the e-leather on the Go North East arrival today, and the latter was two to three times as thick.

Cheers, was sure there was previous discussion regarding it, just couldn't remember where!

Does the e-leather wear quicker than the fabric would on an equivalent seating type?

Just to make my last point a bit clearer as it comes across awfully negative I think, I don't think that the seating looks bad particularly, it's just I prefer the fabric  

Cheers, was sure there was previous discussion regarding it, just couldn't remember where!

Does the e-leather wear quicker than the fabric would on an equivalent seating type?

Just to make my last point a bit clearer as it comes across awfully negative I think, I don't think that the seating looks bad particularly, it's just I prefer the fabric  

Assuming that the cushions were the same size as Go North East's when Arriva's examples first arrived, then I'd guess so. The general condition of the e-leather should remain in better condition compared to the normal fabric moquette, though. When people put their feet on the seats, the moquette has to be replaced after a while (and the bus operator hence incurs an additional cost).

You're not the only one who prefers normal fabric seating - I personally find it much better myself. In my opinion, it feels much nicer. The only upside is that the buses should look a lot more presentable now.

Assuming that the cushions were the same size as Go North East's when Arriva's examples first arrived, then I'd guess so. The general condition of the e-leather should remain in better condition compared to the normal fabric moquette, though. When people put their feet on the seats, the moquette has to be replaced after a while (and the bus operator hence incurs an additional cost).

You're not the only one who prefers normal fabric seating - I personally find it much better myself. In my opinion, it feels much nicer. The only upside is that the buses should look a lot more presentable now.

Aye, I know the benefits of e-leather are more beneficial to the operators (for cleaning etc, as you've said), but I just think that the fabric feels nicer, and it looks like you, and others, will feel the same.

I think, once e-leather becomes standard (and it seems most operators are making it so now), fabric appearing on buses may become the "luxurious" option again.

I have a new idea for the 82 - Use Dennis Dart Marshalls [emoji23]

That's the main reason, along with the customer conception of e-leather being a luxurious feature on-board buses.

It's amazing how much the e-leather has worn on ANE's Streetlites which entered service on the 23 in October 2014. I took a photo of the 'depth' of the e-leather trim on the 23 last week and compared it to the e-leather on the Go North East arrival today, and the latter was two to three times as thick.

leather seating is amazing on some vehicles i remember once sitting down on a South Shields Stagecoach enviro 300 and it was comfy as anything my mate Ryan said he almost fell asleep as they were that comfy but having leather seats is a good option for 5392 and the rest

Aye, I know the benefits of e-leather are more beneficial to the operators (for cleaning etc, as you've said), but I just think that the fabric feels nicer, and it looks like you, and others, will feel the same.

I think, once e-leather becomes standard (and it seems most operators are making it so now), fabric appearing on buses may become the "luxurious" option again.

Ironically, given that today's posts in this thread have mostly been about the X66 service, I used Arriva's X66 service from Darlington to Teesside last weekend. I've already explained in the Arriva section about comments from older customers on-board regarding the green colourscheme and the blue seats not working at all, but prior to boarding, a young woman was talking to (who I assume to be) her son. The young lad had seen the "free Wi-Fi" vinyls on the side of the bus and pointed it out, and the young woman was quick to respond by saying that "these MAX buses have leather seats though, and they're slippy so you nearly fall off when the bus goes round the corner". Personally haven't experienced that myself - but shows that e-leather is a love it / hate it thing.

I have a new idea for the 82 - Use Dennis Dart Marshalls [emoji23]

Lets not mention those 

Haha! Better than Cadets :p

Assuming that the cushions were the same size as Go North East's when Arriva's examples first arrived, then I'd guess so. The general condition of the e-leather should remain in better condition compared to the normal fabric moquette, though. When people put their feet on the seats, the moquette has to be replaced after a while (and the bus operator hence incurs an additional cost).

You're not the only one who prefers normal fabric seating - I personally find it much better myself. In my opinion, it feels much nicer. The only upside is that the buses should look a lot more presentable now.

I may as well hop on the wagon and say that I too prefer the standard fabric seating found on most Go North East buses.

Not a fan of the leather seating used on Arriva's MAX and Sapphire routes. However, I may find the seating on the Streetlites that are being delivered to be a bit nicer.