(26 Jul 2016, 7:40 pm)Tom wrote Sounds like a good day, what were the loadings like on the 11 between Newcastle to Wallsend as they always look quiet when I see them. Still never been on it like.

There was about half a bus in total - two got off in between Newcastle and Wallsend, and the majority got off at Wallsend.

Metrocentre - Lobley Hill
Lobley Hill - Gateshead / Newcastle
Gateshead / Newcastle - Byker
Newcastle - Wallsend
Wallsend - North Shields
North Shields - Whitley Bay

..seemed to be the trend for people getting on/off.

Every seat bar about four were taken at North Shields, actually. I was quite surprised.

(26 Jul 2016, 7:43 pm)Dan wrote There was about half a bus in total - two got off in between Newcastle and Wallsend, and the majority got off at Wallsend.

Metrocentre - Lobley Hill
Lobley Hill - Gateshead / Newcastle
Gateshead / Newcastle - Byker
Newcastle - Wallsend
Wallsend - North Shields
North Shields - Whitley Bay

..seemed to be the trend for people getting on/off.

Every seat bar about four were taken at North Shields, actually. I was quite surprised.

Ah right that's quite good then. It normally just runs in front of the 22 as well so picks up passengers from that. The 17 was always quite busy from North Shields-Whitley Bay to be honest and its quite busy between Percy Main and Shields.

When the Q3 starts hopefully that will be a success too

(26 Jul 2016, 7:22 pm)Dan wrote I do retain a small amount of activity on Flickr by taking my camera to work with me and grabbing the odd photo here and there, as well as uploading archive photos (both from my own and Go North East's collection), but it's rare I go out for a full day to take photos.

Whilst I am currently the complete opposite, I do so many outings that I can't seem to keep up with the uploads anymore, went to Manchester three weeks ago and so far I've only uploaded one photo and things aren't going to get any easier as I'm heading to Leicester on Saturday and I'm now looking to book a trip to Edinburgh in September.

Nice little trip spur of the moment trip yesterday. Had a half day from work, so caught on one of Phoenix’s new 20 seat Mellor bodied Fiat Ducatos working on the 84A. I was a good trip from Newcastle St Thomas Street to Wingrove road. The bus was pretty full and all the passengers were talking about the new bus. The driver was with a mentor and it was a good thrash through the suburbs. I like the door closing announcements. The Mellor bodywork is interesting as such vehicles are usually used by social services and non-psv operators. I noted the bus had tracking for wheelchairs fitted.

I alighted next to Winrove School. In the grounds I noticed they had a new 16 seater transit. I then walked to the General Hospital. The North East Childrens’ Hospital has just constructed a new ambulance station here for their dedicated patient transport Vehicles. These comprise a pair of Fiat Ducatos operated by Darlington based IAS Medical. No vehicles were present on this visit.

I caught Arriva Solo 2844 working the 13.41 46 service back into Newcastle from the grounds of the hospital. I was the only passenger and it was a good a quick journey back into town. I alighted at Haymarket were the bus station was rather congested. It was then back to work for me.

Charles

As mentioned yesterday, I had another outing planned today. It was the first day of the new ASDA Middlesbrough contract for Stagecarriage, and, knowing the allocation would be one of their fleet I'd not previously used, there was all the more reason for having a Teesside jaunt.

I've gone back to my usual format with the journey log first and the commentary following - read on if you'd like to:

0704 #20A: Newcastle Road to Park Lane - Go North East 5425
0724 #X7: Sunderland to Peterlee - Go North East 5336
0759 #X9: Peterlee to Middlesbrough - Go North East 6043
0850 #X93: Middlesbrough to Guisborough - Arriva North East 7424
0935 #468: Guisborough to ASDA Middlesbrough - Stagecarriage 22
1025 #64: Normanby Road to Redcar - Arriva North East 4721
1146 #X3A: Redcar to Skelton High Street - Arriva North East 1560
1246 #5: Skelton High Street to Ormesby Crossroads - Arriva North East 1557
1316 #9: Ormesby Crossroads to Middlesbrough - Arriva North East 1456
1405 #13: Middlesbrough to Stockton - Stagecoach North East 17029
1453 #X12: Stockton to Durham - Arriva North East 7626
1613 #X20: Durham to East Herrington - Go North East 5433
1732 #X1: Doxford International to City Centre - Stagecoach North East 28018
1759 Metro: Sunderland to Stadium of Light - Tyne & Wear Metro 4051

I started off the day on what now seems to be an inevitable: a Streetlite. Most enthusiasts hate them, and it's understandable why. Operators are buying them in their hundreds. This light-weight single decker is wiping out elderly heavy-weight single deckers up and down the country, and is partly responsible for the reduction in variety we see nowadays. They're certainly not my favourite buses but I've become accustomed to the rattles and see the benefits to the operator of having this vehicle type in their fleet: improved reliability, improved fuel economy, and greater income from additional BSOG payments. It's the way this industry works now, and while it's not so good for us enthusiasts, passengers see the benefits of brand new buses and their accompanying features, such as free Wi-Fi, power sockets and Next Stop Announcements.

At Park Lane, I met my connection to a vehicle type I much prefer as an enthusiast: the Mercedes Citaro. Four Mercedes Citaros are allocated to Peterlee Depot for "Wear Tees Xpress" service X7 - a demanding route with plenty of opportunities for the Merc to demonstrate how great a bus it truly is. Go North East fitted Wi-Fi to these four buses earlier this year though they have yet to gain the recognisable Wi-Fi 'blob' (odd on a route with competition!) I sat back, relaxed, and connected. The Wi-Fi worked flawlessly but I didn't look down at my phone too much, as I'd otherwise miss out on the marvellous coastal views from Ryhope to Dawdon.

Another modern-day favourite vehicle type for me is the Volvo B9TL, which I was connecting to at Peterlee on an X9 service. The Tyne Tees Xpress really pushes the B9s to the limit and it will be interesting to see what their replacement will be, when the time comes. I found it strange being back on the A19 in a bus now that I'm so used to driving up and down it in my car - but one thing remained the same: we were often in the fast lane overtaking cars and lorries! This journey didn't last too long, but I regretted my choice of seat upstairs at the front, as I spent most of the time being blinded by the low sun.

It looked like it was going to be a warm day, so I grabbed myself two bottles of Mountain Dew to see me through my next journeys. I was thankful to see one of the ex-London MAX Volvo B7s in the layover bays, as it meant I wouldn't have a cramped journey to Guisborough. It pulled onto the stand 10 minutes early to allow time for loading. I was impressed by how clean the bus was, inside and out, and you really couldn't tell the bus was 11 years old. Whilst I'm not a fan of the inconsistencies within the "MAX" brand, I do think the USB charging points on each seat is a nice touch. The offside upper deck ones didn't seem to be working but I moved seats and found that the nearside ones were. There's a handy little blue light which presumably indicates whether they are working or not - it'd be nice to see something similar on all vehicles with power sockets, to allow for faults to be identified and repaired more quickly.

We soon arrived in Guisborough (which actually couldn't come soon enough as an old woman downstairs had the entire bus smelling like a farm - nobody was best pleased!) I intended to get a photo of the Stagecarriage ASDA bus - a new contract commencing today for Stagecarriage, having previously been in the hands of Stagecoach. The sun came out just in time for the arrival of Stagecarriage 22, an Alexander ALX400.

Having never previously used the ASDA Middlesbrough service, I decided today would be the perfect day to do so. It was an even bigger winner, as I'd not previously sampled the ALX400 allocated. I took my seat upstairs at the front and enjoyed the views paired with Absolute Radio playing through the speakers on the bus. Makes a bit of a change from Next Stop Announcements, which is what usually comes from speakers on buses! Would highly recommend the service - even better that it's free!

I had a 10 minute connection after getting off which was ample time to head into ASDA for some sweets and run back to the bus stop for the 64 to Redcar. I was hoping that a Temsa Avenue would be the bus allocated given that it's so rare I actually get to use them. My luck was in: one of the 'new' Temsa Avenues acquired last year turned up. I found the interior to be a little dull - the native examples are brightened up somewhat by the Arriva fabric seat moquette, but the acquired ones have dark navy e-leather. The e-leather certainly didn't improve the comfort of the seats either. The power of the bus was impressive nevertheless - on par with (or possibly better than) the Mercedes Citaro I'd used on Go North East's X7 earlier in the day.

On arrival into Redcar, I looked into a few different possible journeys. I had the ultimate goal of getting to Stockton for 14:30 for a photo of the Stagecarriage 88 service. They allocated their recently acquired Dart - the first bus to be repainted into the company's new corporate livery - to this service from start of play, and I wanted to get a photograph of it. It would have been a bonus to travel there from Middlesbrough on the Stagecoach 13, which had been allocated a Dennis Trident. The journey I settled for was a trip to Whitby on the X4 with a tight connection to the X93 back to Middlesbrough, but the allocated bus was a Temsa Avenue and I hadn't quite recovered from the previous one at this point (those seats definitely aren't Sapphire standard)... I instead decided to sample another Sapphire service: the X3A to Skelton High Street. I'm usually one to suggest Arriva have nailed their internal presentation of their fleet, so I was quite surprised to see every power socket had "240V" written on in marker pen, and a yellow sticker above the socket (with no Arriva or Sapphire branding) advising the same thing. Alas; it looked quite unprofessional, but I was just pleased the sockets were working (highly unusual for a Streetlite!)

After quite a nice journey on the X3A, I decided to sample Stockton's Sapphire offering on the 5. By comparison to the previous journey I was quite disappointed - the power sockets weren't working, and the Next Stop Announcement display was rarely in sync with the audio. The bus was still smartly presented, though I noticed the absence of a 'text us' cove panel vinyl with the fleet number of the bus on it (which the previous Redcar example had).

I alighted at Ormesby Crossroads - I had time to kill and getting the 9 back to Middlesbrough would allow me to cross another vehicle type off the list: the VDL Pulsar. I'd just missed out on Stockton's 1512 on the 5 earlier, so had to squeeze one in somehow! 1456 was the bus which arrived to take me on this journey, and, again, I was really impressed by how clean and tidy the interior was. I especially liked the advertising posters for the MAX services on the cove panels - it was just a pity they were all for the X93, and there was none for the X12! The VDL Pulsars are quite fun buses with plenty of character - far superior than the Wright Streetlite in my opinion, even if the vibrations while idling are quite bad at the back of the bus!

Back to my plan now, and after taking a few photos in Middlesbrough, I boarded 17029 which was running around five minutes late. I shared the upper deck with two others and there was a nice cool breeze while the bus roared through the streets of Middlesbrough and Stockton. I find I always enjoy my journeys on these Tridents - I've been quite lucky to have sampled two in the past week! It wasn't long before we arrived at a very congested Stockton High Street and it was time to get off. Sadly I didn't manage to get a very good photo of 17029 due to all of the buses waiting to occupy a stand, and the awkward manoeuvre which 17029 had to undertake to get away.

I've never been on one of Stockton's Cadets before, so when I read in the Rare & Odd Workings thread that one was on service 7 to Yarm, I tried to fit it into my plan for the day. Sadly it arrived some 30 minutes later than I'd have liked it to, so I settled for a late-running X12 to Durham instead. The journey was great - there was only two other passengers upstairs on this VDL Gemini and all the windows were open so there was a nice breeze throughout. Approaching Leazes Bowl roundabout was a bit of a nightmare - the traffic was quite bad, which is presumably why the bus was over ten minutes late.

I alighted in Durham and got a few photographs. The bus station was as congested as ever, so buses were having to do loops around the bus station until a stand became available. I slowly made my way home from here, using the peak-time express X20 service to East Herrington and then the peak-time express X1 service from Doxford International to City Centre. I wouldn't usually get the opportunity to sample either, given that I'm usually at work in Gateshead at this time!

Having sampled buses from each of the big three, I thought it was only right to travel home on the Tyne & Wear Metro!

I hope you've enjoyed reading what I got up today - it'd be nice to see what others got up to today too!

Nowt special from me today. Of course being me this would probably be better off in the annoying thread.

1207 Newton Aycliffe - Bishop Auckland (Northern 142021)
1313 X1 Bishop Auckland - Shildon (ANE 1511)
1544 5A Shildon King William - Newton Aycliffe (ANE 1428)

First I headed to Bishop Auckland as I wanted a photo of SB Travel's recently acquired Solo VU52UEF. I opted for the Northern service to Bishop Auckland as who knows when the 5/5A would turn up with it being battered by all the roadworks in Darlington but also the train takes about 10 minutes whilst the 5/5A takes about 40! Pacer 142021 turned up for this journey which was good as I've not had this one, now... this has to be one of the better Pacer's I've been on, now comes the dirty secret... I actually don't mind the 142's, so long as the seats are okay, I actually don't think they are that bad! Most the passengers on-board departed at Shildon for the Shildon Shed Bash Event as I expected, especially as this was one of a number of extra journeys that have been put on for this event, effectively creating an hourly frequency between Darlington and Bishop Auckland rather than the usual two hour frequency... Can Flying Scotsman come to Shildon more often so I can have more train journeys?

After departing the train I walked into the town centre with me heading to Poundland for some Pepsi, annoyingly I got stuck in a bit of a queue and then another till was opened, sadly the woman in front of me seemingly had nowhere better to be than Poundland and as there was a rack of stuff to the side of me I was stuck behind her with the people behind me getting served before me! If you think that was annoying enough, the cashier then said that one of her purchase's was 3 for a £1 so of course she took advantage of the offer disappearing off to add to complete the offer, leaving me to stand in the shop like a melon whilst she went off, you should have heard how loud I sighed when she went off. Eventually I got served and after spending 5 MINUTES!!! in there. Seriously!

Not much happened after that other than two lads shouting BOGIES! seriously, how many years ago is it since Dick and Dom in Da Bungalow was last on TV? Think you need a more up to date TV references lads!

Photographed the thing I came for, pleased as I've had a few failed attempts at catching it, was fearful that it wasn't going to appear today after seeing the usual Solo on the 9 as my friend saw the Solo that normally does the 108 on the 9 on Monday, so I feared it would be back on 108's today, even though it's destination screens are kaput at the moment. Was going to jump on the 5A but just missed it but fortunately was able to get the X1 and mercifully got Pulsar 1511 instead of a StreetLite. Was surprised to see/hear it having next stop announcements especially as at the time they were done the StreetLite's didn't have NSA's, they are in the same style as they are on the 1/5/5A as it's the same set up. think the 1B is as well.

Then snapped the Park and Ride services for the Shildon Shed Bash Event, annoyingly missed the one The Eden was doing which was even worse as it was a bus I didn't have. Then made my way to Shildon King William which is where most of the buses stop in Shildon and was hoping another target would appear which was Weardale's recently acquired ex WebberBus Solo YJ59GGA which I'm pleased to say is what turned up on the 7 this afternoon.

Then 1428 was my chariot home on the 5A.

Thanks for reading, photos in the usual place.

went on a trip around Derbyshire & Nottingham today,took notes of fleetnumbers on my phone but phone crashed & it didnt save


Trent Barton Volvo B7RLE/Wright Eclipse - Comet - Chesterfield > Derby

Great bus & Nice route,a good route for the Volvo`s to show off their power. WIFI Worked & Driver was also very polite,only downside was the Aircon Unit was either turned off or broken,meaning by time it filled up in Alfreton it was very warm - 9/10

Trent Barton Volvo B11R/Plaxton Elite - Red Arrow - Derby > Nottingham
Another Very nice vehicle from Trent Barton driven by another friendly driver (do Trent do extra training on how to be friendly because most drivers around here on First are miserable sods!). Coach made great time on a clear run of A52 plus both WIFI & USB Ports worked! - 10/10

2011 NCT Scania Omnidekka - 68 - Nottingham > Bulwell
Decent bus but age is starting to take its toll on it. Leather seating starting to wear & WIFI was broke. Was decent hill climbing but after 2 Great Trent buses was a little bit of a let down. One thing i dont understand is that downstairs they have high backed seating,whilst upstairs the seating is very plastic (almost Urban 90 Style) - 6/10

NCT Scania Omnidekka - 17 - Bulwell > Valley Rd
An Older model to the last Omnidekka (unbranded spare of around 2004-2005)plastic seating on both deck but at least the WIFI Worked on this & had fabric instead of leather! not as powerful on the hills but to be expected due to age - 7/10

NCT Scania Omnitown - 53 - Valley Rd > Arnold
Never been on one of these & as i saw this coming down behind us I jumped off the 17 & Caught this. Very rattly but again at least the plastic seating had fabric,for its age it actually did ok on the hills - 7/10

NCT Scania/ADL Enviro 400 - 79 - Arnold > Nottingham
Making a slight change from the last few Omni range buses,not sure if it was the driver but compared to the 2 omnidekkas this seemed slower,despite being newer.best seating of the 4 NCT Vehicles,WIFI Worked plus gave a smooth rattle free ride - 9/10

Trent Barton Volvo B8RLE/Wright Eclipse 3 - The Two - Nottingham > Ilkeston
Fantastic bus,first time I`ve tried this & now just makes me annoyed the likes of First moved from Eclipes to Streetlites as this is the much better product! Great on speed,smooth engine with all the features working! 10/10

Yourbus Mercedes Citaro - Y3 - Ilkeston > Derby
Not the best sounding Citaro i`ve been on,but did decent speed along the dual-carriage way into Derby - 8/10

Trent Barton Optare Tempo SR - I4 - Derby > Chaddesden
Possibly the worst bus i caught today,Awful build quality rattling all the way (If i remember correctly Trent complained to Optare about this when they first bought them?) I Can see why nobody else every purchased them! - 4/10

Arriva Derby Scania Omnicity - 20 Chaddesden > Derby
compared to the last bus this was a godsend! I Let one of the I4s passed to catch this bus instead,typical Omnicity really,few rattles but decent power - 8/10

Trent Barton Scania L94UB/Wright Solar - 6.X Derby - Belper
Was very impressed by the power on this considering its age & Trent have done a good job both inside & out refurbishing it,if it wasnt for the plate it could easily pass for a bus 10 years younger!  - 10/10

Trent Barton Optare Solo M920 - 7.1 Belper > Derby
Again,very impressed by this bus considering its age & again top marks to Trent for its refurbishment,plus considering its age did very well on the hilly sections of the route (can somebody send some of Trents staff over to Yorkshire to show operators how to properly take care of a solo!).Also if anyone goes around for a day out around this area,I would recommend this route over the Sixes for people who like a quieter journey taking in a couple of nice little villages,timewise it takes around 15min longer than the 6.1/2/3

Trent Barton Volvo B7RLE/Wright Eclipse - Comet - Derby > Chesterfield
Again,another Decent Volvo showing off its power on this route.I Must say trent have done a better job than NCT on keeping the leather from wearing away,considering this batch for the Comet still have their original seating from their days on The Two

all together a very nice day,both NCT & Trent Barton run very good networks & it must be said for NCT,Considering the network of routes its valid on,the Dayrider at £3.50 is very good value!

how many years ago is it since Dick and Dom in Da Bungalow was last on TV?

Still gets repeated occasionally

Due to rain issues i planned to leave the house at 13:00 but it was still raining and after being notified 3831 was the 14:25 of newcastle i was disappointed but didnt let this stop me having a outing.
13:55 20 5427 fullwell grange to Sunderland Homeside
I planned to wait for the 14:00 9 to north shields in hope of getting anything but a omnicity well i couldn't be more inpatient so got 5427 proved ok aswell.
I planned to get the 14:30 to heworth but had 30 minutes spare time so gazed at 34605 on the 20.
14:06 20 34605 Sunderland homeside to hylton road pc world
I couldn't resist a ride i had a short hop on this it was a ok journey but its had better days.
I got of 34605 and went to cross only to find both the 10 and 20 coming at the same time,i angrily missed both.
I checked and seen the 8 wouldn't come till 14;19 so decided to walk to sunderland station on route grabbed a photo of 653 on route back to Peterlee with a engineer but later heared it worked the 37.
14;30 northern 142015. Sunderland to heworth.
I hoped to have anything as i hadnt used a northern service for a while the train was there when i got to sunderland in the form of 142015 one pacer that appears most times on the durham coast line.
We left spot on time we only had about 13 pasengers on the train it was a nice journey, passed 156443 with the new northern livery looking very good.
14:46 Q2 8332 Heworth Interchange to Felling Squre.
This was here first so with pleasure boarded its a fine bus and also noticed that the man on the speaker will be replaced by emma hinett.
14:56 69 4949 Felling Squre to near heworth.
I hoped a renown but reading 4949 was allocated i didnt no what could come but 4949 turned up its a nice vehicle shame 4944 couldnt be the poppy bus as it could be a spare for the ttx with its tachograph.
14;59 69 4902 near heworth to Felling Square.
I was pleased to get this as its ex lime and i loved riding on it to beamish back in the day.
It jurked for a while but it was alright journey.
15:08 TB10 61 Plate taxi. Felling Squre to Wrekenton high street.
After finding out that i missed the 68 back to heworth i looked at the times and found both the 94 and Q1 were due at 15:13 i so 5390 across the road with a q2 to heworth i left it but grew more board so when i so the tb10 i got it.
I planned to connect with the 56 there this was ok about 2 pensioners onboard.
15:13/15:19 56 6097 Wrekenton high street to Wheatsheaf.
I got this just in time it was ok the driver thrashed it before nissan very good fun.
Alighted at the wheatsheaf.
16:16 x36 4945 Wheatsheaf to Southwick green.
I caught this after a pop in tesco i planned to get the 592 after a bus to southwick.
4945 was my ride just a short unnoteworthy journey.
16:40/16:33 592 YX61BJO Southwick green to Thompson road.
A short ride on this a new driver but still early he used to work for compass and was reguarly on the 558 when it was boldon to seaburn then he done 79s.
Annoyingly today he was 7 minutes early if it was the x36 hed be fired.
Thanks for reading

A Small review of my outing in CouquetDale today..

Was originally meant to be doing both Spirit Buses 16 and Perrymans Service 477 to Holy Island today, But a oversleep meant I couldn't do the latter.

Journey 1 Brockley Whins Metro - Haymarket Metro  4007 and 40**

Pretty much the same as usual as other days, Packed all the way to Haymarket.
Played on my phone most of this journey so didn't take in much.

Once off the Metro I walked to Haymarket to meet Ashington's very own Thomas Simms ( GX03SVC on NEB ) at Stand Q, We then walked to the X16 Stand for the X16 to Morpeth.

Journey 2 Haymarket Bus Station - Morpeth Bus Station  ANE 1499

Was hoping for a repeat of 2 days previous when I had 1411 floored all the way to the Haymarket ( Econospeed has been turned off in that one ) but a Generic Eco-Setup Pulsar appeared.
Driver pushed it for most of the journey with one Gear Downshift into 2nd at 28mph when the Driver Applied the power, Which in turn confuses these Voith Gearboxes to downshift rather dramatically.
Got stuck behind a Slow Driver in a red Peugeot once past Clifton and into Morpeth, With us arriving into Morpeth with the sight of PCL Travel's S1 Branded, Former London United Dennis Dart SLF, And a DAF DB250 on the 35A.

Thomas Went to get some photos outside while I had a Toilet Stop, Which then on the X14 7446 appeared..

Journey 3 Morpeth Bus Station - Rothbury Front Street ANE 7446

I sat downstairs at the back while Thomas went upstairs for " The Scenery " I got my camera out and started recording sounds I needed from this type of B7TL ( 4 Speed Voith as opposed to the Ususal 5 Speed ZF Ecomat or 2005 onwards 6 Speed Ecomat's ) The reason I needed sounds is for a Omsi Mod I'm about to start on, Which Involves modifying the sounds in the B7TL In Omsi, Now I've got my Voith sounds in, I only need a ZF Example now to record before I get on to the boring stuff.

Putting that aside, I enjoyed looking out from the tinted windows this vehicle features, This and sister 7445 were new in the short lived " Viva " Spec, Which featured High Backed Esteban Seating, Tinted Windows and a totally new design of Fabric which was a massive improvement over the likes of previous investments. However this was short lived, And the only examples new to the North East to feature this spec were these 2 B7TL's, The 57 reg batch of Coast and Castle's VDL DB250 Lowlanders and the 57 reg batch of Euro 4 Enviro 400s, The latter batch all being refurbished to MAX and Sapphire Spec now, The Fabric gone but the tinted windows are still in place.

Another thing to note about this trip is that this was my first time on the Original Route this service took until Winter 2013, When a Landslide cut off any traffic movements on that stretch of road, While the diversion via Cragside was more over the moors style, This route winds through the bottom of the Valley next to the River Couquet, Before joining the main road into Rothbury at the bottom of Cragside.

We alighted in Rothbury and headed for something to eat.

We spent around 2 and a half hours in Rothbury, Mostly on our phones using the free wifi just outside the Turks Head Pub, Having a chat and getting a shot of the next X14 to pass through, In the form of Scania CN94UB 4653.

Me and Thomas split up from then to go photos of the Scania at different locations, My photo of it can be found here https://www.flickr.com/photos/140662069@...372502230/

At 1440 Steve Hirst arrived in his Enviro 200 to take up Service 16 to Alnwinton and back, Via the stunning Northumberland National Park.

Journey 4 Rothbury Front Street - Thropton via Alnwinton Spirit Buses MX14FUG

A unknown Lad, Who Thomas believes has driven for Arriva in the past at its Morpeth Drivers Base arrived at the Wheel while Steve was helping route learn him.
Commentary started after we pulled out of Rothbury, And once past the familiar areas of Thropton we entered Northumberland National Park, A Untouched area stretching from here to the border with Scotland.
One of the best routes I have ever ridden on in my entire life, Miles upon miles of untouched land, The Cheviot Hills , The Simonside Hills and various Hamlets , Wildlife and Villages to see, I will not say anymore as people might want to see for themselves and why wouldn't you? Its brilliant and worth the £2 child Daysaver fare.
Once back in Thropton, We passed 7446 again while on layover at the Three Weat Heads Terminus, We then carried on the 2 and a half miles to Rothbury, Where this mysterious driver had a chat with Steve and left, With Steve taking over the driving for the 15 to Alnwick.

Journey 5 Rothbury Front Street - Alnwick Spirit Buses MX14FUG  

4 Mins late, We pounded over the Cheviot Hills in the middle of a freak rainstorm at 56mph, The Touque Cutoff point or to put it straightforward, The maximum speed this bus is limited too.
Steve doesn't like to hang around either, Testing the Suspension to the limit going through Big Puddles at this speed, Being flung back in my seat in the process.
We rather quickly arrived into Alnwick, With the rain still pouring down... And the masses of Pizza Boxes and all other sorts of rubbish lying around the bus station.
Around 20 Chavs had gathered inside the Bus Station drinking away and doing all other sorts of stuff.
I went into Morrisions and Thomas went into a Takeway for something to eat, We then walked round the back of the takeaway to catch the X20 to Amble from there instead of the Bus Station.


Journey 5 Alnwick - Warkworth Castle ANE 7413

A Sapphire driver, From the Ashington rota on this route was driving, We trundled through the countryside and onto the Northumberland Coastline at around 25 Mph for most of the way, With the driver making no effort whatsoever to keep to time, Nothing more to say about this journey.

We alighted in Warkworth to the sight of the ever increasing presence of Nexus Style Timetables appearing throughout Northumberland, Weird seeing Services advertised to Edinburgh appearing on Timetables exactly the same to what I see at my local stop in South Tyneside for services to Lukes Lane! That's what we saw when we were in Berwick 2 days prior.

Journey 6 Warkworth Castle - Alnwick Travlesure YN09LCM

A Cummins Engined Example, Equipped with the 6 Cylinder ISBe6 5.9L and a Allison gearbox which the name of the type eludes me.
As expected, The 5.9L Cummins climbed the steep inclines around Shilbottle with ease, Even accelerating which isn't normally found on newer buses.
We passed Steve Hirst again running to his E200 from the Petrol Station shop at the Services in Alnwick, This is where Service 15 starts and this journey has around a hour layover at the Petrol Station.
After passing the various housing estates in Alniwck, We alighted just past the Library to catch the final X20 of the day off Alnwick, Which finishes short at Ashington.

Journey 7 Alnwick - Wansbeck Hospital ANE 7445

The other Voith Gearboxed B7TL Turned up, Equipped to the Viva Spec mentioned a few journeys above, This journey was also worked by a Ashington rota Sapphire Driver, Which is pretty unusual to see on this route.
Though Thankfully this time the driver put his foot down once outside of Alnwick, With us being the only ones on the top deck for the majority of the journey.
We passed 7412 around Amble which was on the only Alnwick Board on the X20, This is worked by a Alnwick Leading driver and swaps with another B7 every Wednesday.
All the rest are worked by Ashington Rotas.
Thankfully my connection onto the X21 to the Haymarket was guarantied as the X21 was running 7 Mins Late, Though as it gained time towards Ashington, it all of a sudden caught up with us at Northumbria Hospital, So we made a dash from upstairs onto 7501, Which was operating this X21.

Journey 8 Wansbeck Hospital? - Newcastle Haymarket Bus Station ANE 7501

While I was expecting this one to be knackered, It was anything but that, With semi-Kickdowns happening throughout the journey.
A former Econospeed Equipped example, They were turned off after widespread complaints from the drivers that drove them, As Econospeed has messed up the gear changes, Due to forcing through gear changes to " Improve Fuel Efficiency " This has messed up the rhythm of the original Gear Changing Map, Which to put it easily means the gear changing patterns are messed up on some occasions. However this one performed brilliantly bar them few hiccups.
I arrived into Haymarket with the sight of my favourite B7TL in the North East, Arriva's 7486, Leaving on the X15.

I headed for the Metro and to my delight found my South Hylton train was Due, 4073 and sister Metrocar 4074 were my ride home today.
Didn't take notice again of this Metro Journey as it was packed, Played on my phone for most of the journey and alighted at my local metro Station for the short walk home

My first photo off today can be found here  https://www.flickr.com/photos/140662069@...ed-public/

Hope to do a few more reviews over the Holidays, I have a few more interesting days planned too.

Thanks for Reading
STL

I think you may have been at the Wansbeck Hospital rather then the Northumbria Hospital in Cramlington.

(30 Jul 2016, 10:15 pm)GMitchelhill wrote I think you may have been at the Wansbeck Hospital rather then the Northumbria Hospital in Cramlington.

That's the one! Cheers Gary.

Great review, South Tyne Lad.

Just one thing, the bit about the "Viva" interior, it is "Operation Overdrive" spec, I don't believe that there is a "Viva" spec, believe Viva was just a name they gave to some sets of service changes made on Teesside and County Durham at around that same point.

Today I've been over in Leicester on a enthusiasts trip sampling some of the Confidence Bus fleet, mainly riding a selection of Olympian's and a few other bits including Volvo Citybus/Alexander RV - F127PHM. Sadly due to a cock up on my part this morning I irritatingly had no time to photograph the new Arriva Enviro 400MMC's and I missed two? buses off this tour due to late running with me requiring the trains back to Darlington to catch one of the last two buses home.

Tomorrow I am FINALLY doing Dalesbus!

(30 Jul 2016, 10:24 pm)Jimmi wrote Great review, South Tyne Lad.

Just one thing, the bit about the "Viva" interior, it is "Operation Overdrive" spec, I don't believe that there is a "Viva" spec, believe Viva was just a name they gave to some sets of service changes made on Teesside and County Durham at around that same point.

Thanks Jimmi

I'm just going from things I've been told, I'm honestly not sure what its called, Its just ive been told its Viva Spec, Though I have also heard of Operation Overdrive so it could indeed be called that.

(30 Jul 2016, 10:24 pm)Jimmi wrote Great review, South Tyne Lad.

Just one thing, the bit about the "Viva" interior, it is "Operation Overdrive" spec, I don't believe that there is a "Viva" spec, believe Viva was just a name they gave to some sets of service changes made on Teesside and County Durham at around that same point.

Viva was marketed with this specification, and all the buses that operated Viva routes had this specification, whereas other vehicles which were delivered (other 05 MPDs) which didn't operate those routes had the older seats and interior. 

Only a few other vehicles, the Enviro400s and the other batch of B7TL/ALX400s at Southern Counties got the specification.

Edit: Operation Overdrive was marketed as Viva in the North East, where other divisions got something else. Knew I'd forgotten something 

Crackling review South Tyne Lad. I did the Alwinton trip last Saturday, it's one of my favourite bus routes. Excellent photo of the Scania on the X14.

I went to Whitley Bay and sampled Phoenix Coaches W1 and W3. Have to say their drivers are really friendly.

The only other enthusiast I saw was that little guy who is usually at the corner at Haymarket.

Keep the reviews coming.

Charles

(31 Jul 2016, 10:15 am)Charles41 wrote Crackling review South Tyne Lad. I did the Alwinton trip last Saturday, it's one of my favourite bus routes. Excellent photo of the Scania on the X14.

I went to Whitley Bay and sampled Phoenix Coaches W1 and W3. Have to say their drivers are really friendly.

The only other enthusiast I saw was that little guy who is usually at the corner at Haymarket.

Keep the reviews coming.

Charles

Thank you Charles
It is a brilliant route and I hope to try it again soon.

You must have been lucky with the Pheonix drivers, All of them that were driving when I went to Whitley Bay were all miserable looking!

(31 Jul 2016, 10:15 am)GX03 SVC wrote Viva was marketed with this specification, and all the buses that operated Viva routes had this specification, whereas other vehicles which were delivered (other 05 MPDs) which didn't operate those routes had the older seats and interior. 

I remember it a little differently as I thought 'Viva' was simply a brand name attached to the network review.

https://m.flickr.com/#/photos/eybusman/5690167744/

Certainly this Vecta sporting Viva pomotion didn't have the upgraded spec interior you mention (unless carpeted walls count!)

(31 Jul 2016, 4:41 pm)James101 wrote I remember it a little differently as I thought 'Viva' was simply a brand name attached to the network review.

https://m.flickr.com/#/photos/eybusman/5690167744/

Certainly this Vecta sporting Viva pomotion didn't have the upgraded spec interior you mention (unless carpeted walls count!)

"The new fleet – made up of 27 brand new buses and 23 refurbished vehicles – launched under the banner of 'VIVA' represents a substantial investment of £3.5 million by Arriva North East, one of the region's premier transport operators. The investment provides improved facilities, increased services on many routes and better travel information services.
The new buses will offer improved levels of comfort and accessibility for all travellers. Each is fitted with comfortable individual seats, additional luggage space, tinted windows and low level hydraulics – which means there is no step up from the kerb, making access easier, particularly for those with limited mobility, or parents with buggies or wheelchairs."


That Vecta wasn't part of the Viva programme.

(31 Jul 2016, 4:46 pm)GX03 SVC wrote "The new fleet – made up of 27 brand new buses and 23 refurbished vehicles – launched under the banner of 'VIVA' represents a substantial investment of £3.5 million by Arriva North East, one of the region's premier transport operators. The investment provides improved facilities, increased services on many routes and better travel information services.
The new buses will offer improved levels of comfort and accessibility for all travellers. Each is fitted with comfortable individual seats, additional luggage space, tinted windows and low level hydraulics – which means there is no step up from the kerb, making access easier, particularly for those with limited mobility, or parents with buggies or wheelchairs."


That Vecta wasn't part of the Viva programme.

The one you are quoting was 'Viva Durham' - the network review that took place the day the new members of the Operation Overdrive fleet entered service.

The Vecta is advertising 'Viva Tees Valley' - the network review of the Teesside and Tees & District operations that took place in July 2006 which didn't see any brand new vehicles introduced (until March 2007 when the delayed Omnicitys arrived at Stockton for the X6).

'Viva' was the network branding used in 2005/6. Funny enough, only the Durham and Tees Valley ones were branded as such and it was quietly dropped. Given the current Tees Valley network is vastly different to what it was after Viva.

(31 Jul 2016, 4:59 pm)Kuyoyo wrote The one you are quoting was 'Viva Durham' - the network review that took place the day the new members of the Operation Overdrive fleet entered service.

The Vecta is advertising 'Viva Tees Valley' - the network review of the Teesside and Tees & District operations that took place in July 2006 which didn't see any brand new vehicles introduced (until March 2007 when the delayed Omnicitys arrived at Stockton for the X6).

'Viva' was the network branding used in 2005/6. Funny enough, only the Durham and Tees Valley ones were branded as such and it was quietly dropped. Given the current Tees Valley network is vastly different to what it was after Viva.

They also did Viva changes in the southern end of County Durham in autumn 2006? (areas such as Aycliffe, Bishop Auckland, Ferryhill etc). It was only used to promote the changes really.

Review of my DalesBus outing today (July 31st 2016).

0822 Newton Aycliffe Rail Station - Darlington Rail Station (Northern 156479)
Started the day off on the Northern service that runs between Bishop Auckland and Whitby in the summer. Nice change to the Pacer's we are usually subjected to on the Bishop Line, I quite like the 156's hopefully I can get one that isn't 156479 next time though as I've had it before.

0946 830 Darlington Northgate - Ingleton Community Centre (ANE 2869)
Turned up a few minutes late owing to the diversion as a result of the road closure as you head off the A66 and into Great Burdon and it remained a few minutes late throughout the journey but we arrived at Ingleton on-time. This journey was roughly two and a half hours long which sounds like a method of torture but with the nice scenery it was actually not that bad at all, helps when you get the comfortable seat at the back as well.

1230 881 Ingleton Community Centre - Malham, National Park Centre (Kirkby Lonsdale Coach Hire YD63VKL)
My next journey was Kirkby Lonsdale Coach Hire's Optare Solo SR Slimline YD63VKL. Not a bad little bus, driver was very friendly, the scenery was quite good on this route, after Settle I discovered why this route uses a Slimline Solo, it's not possible to put anything bigger on, the roads to Malham from just outside Settle are all single track roads with a few passing places. This journey was roughly 50 minutes long, I then had around 75 minutes to kill in Malham, not much to do other than walk around and sit, eventually it was time for my next bus.

1440 873 Malham, National Park Centre - Skipton Bus Station (Transdev in Keighley 713 - YJ04LXW)
Next bus was this MPD, not too bad this bus and journey. This journey took roughly 45 minutes making it into Skipton with a tight connection with my next bus.

1528 X43 Skipton Bus Station - Grassington, National Park Centre (Transdev Burnley & Pendle 2769)
The Witch Way branded Volvo B9 2769 was the next leg of my trek, quite nice bus, good scenery as well. One thing I couldn't help but think was in regards to seating on Arriva Sapphire double deckers, some say that they should all have the same seats that the first Sapphire E400's were fitted with or the ones on Transdev's "the36" some say they can't due to space but the seats in these seem to be pretty much the same and they have two on each side. After not long, the bus arrived at Grassington.

1600 812 Grassington, National Park Centre - York Rail Station (Stephensons of Easingwold: SK15HBB)
Final DalesBus of the day was the Stephensons of Easingwold Enviro 200 SK15HBB. Not the best bus, fair few rattles and shaking, especially from one of the handrails which was annoying. Driver drove this like a man on a mission although it wasn't quick on the hills at all. On this journey we saw the Arriva 825 to Harrogate at Pateley Bridge and the 820 at Fountains Abbey Visitors Centre. Journey arrived at York at 17:50, this was a long journey but I was tired by this point.

1829 York Rail Station - Darlington (CrossCountry)
Two Voyagers running on this one journey, it was quite busy and I was unamused to find people in my reserved seat, told them three times that they were in my seat then gave up and had to look for somewhere else to sit which irritated me.

1915 7 Darlington Tubwell Row - Newton Aycliffe (ANE 1516)
This was my steed home this evening, pretty uneventful journey really, just a steady away journey home.

Thanks for reading, photos are on my Flickr.

1740 12A Blaydon Bus Stop -> Eldon (NK56KHE)

1815 Metro Monument -> Monkseaton

1900 900 Monkseaton -> F.L.E (V313LGC)

1930 900 F.L.E -> Monkseaton (V313LGC)

2100 Metro Monkseaton -> W.B

2115 Metro W.B -> Eldon

2220 45E Eldon -> Metrocentre (NK15EOH)
https://flic.kr/p/Khy7qS

2240 6 Metrocentre -> Stanley (GX03SVD)

I'm on the 689 and there is 5 standees. WTF is going on?!

(02 Aug 2016, 9:44 am)Jimmi wrote I'm on the 689 and there is 5 standees. WTF is going on?!

It must be market day

(02 Aug 2016, 10:00 am)biglugs@yahoo.com wrote It must be market day

It is  

Hexham Market day is a Tuesday

Don't normally do these. Decided to head to Berwick as I didn't make it a few weeks ago.

Left the house around 0830, got to Stannington and realised S1 was due, so went over to St Mary's Estate and it was the usual Dart on the service.

Onwards up the A1, where I called into the depot of Travelsure to get a few photos.

Then head a further few miles up, and since the tide was at it's low point during the morning, it meant the 477 Holy Island service was only going to do one trip today, so went up to the causeway and got a photo of Perryman's 477 branded Solo heading in each direction over the causeway.

Quick dash over to the coach park on Holy Island revealed to contain 5 coaches, 3 of them National Holidays (of which I photoed one of them on the causeway). Heading back to the mainland, my fuel light came on, so a quick top up of fuel at Beal services, before a bit of off roading to West Goswick user work crossing on the ECML where I photoed a Southbound Super Voyager. Returned to the A1 eventually and headed to Spittal crossing where I photoed a Northbound XC service before the crossing keeper allowed me to Cross.

In Spittal photoed a service B6 Solo SR heading into the seaside village, before getting a great shot of the same vehicle heading into Highcliffe estate with the bridges in the background and a Virgin EC 225 set on the Royal Border Bridge. Next was a quick drive to the leisure centre in Tweedmouth to await the arrival of Travelsure service 32 which was their Solo SR YJ11EKR.

Then into the Pastures Estate to photo the Holy Island Solo again on the B2 / B3, then I went to park up in West End, and decided to get some bus and train photos on the main road bridge over the Tweed. Returned to the car via the old road bridge that is now one way, before heading up to the Perryman's Depot for some more photos.

Decided to continue my way up to Dunbar, where I noted that two 253 were operating close together (one going normal route to Edinburgh, whilst one was going more direct.). Managed to get the direct running service, but missed out getting the normal service as it operated on a different road to the A1. Into Dunbar via a quick visit to the Eve's depot before going into the Town Centre to get a photo of First service X8 which won't be running for much longer.

Consulting the timetable book I picked up from the Perryman's depot, I noted that 2 service 60s crossed at Duns at 1830ish, so headed to there and photoed both vehicle before returning home via Coldstream and Wooler (with a quick look in at the Glen Valley depot).

Out of interest Gary, what were the 477 loadings like?

I've seen very packed Solos end up being replaced by larger vehicles on the way back

(02 Aug 2016, 10:28 pm)Ambassador wrote Out of interest Gary, what were the 477 loadings like?

I've seen very packed Solos end up being replaced by larger vehicles on the way back

I believe they were quite low today, mainly because there was only one return journey on the 477 today (as opposed to 2 return journies) due to the time of the tides. But my last visit to the causeway did result in one of the Mercs appearing on the 477. It does advise in the timetable for you to ring the company if there is a large group of you travelling.