RE: Arriva North East: Service Suggestions
(02 Nov 2017, 10:09 pm)S830OFT wrote Some Suggestions
Darlington:
7: Darlington - Newton Aycliffe - Ferryhill - Durham - Arnison Centre
This service will be revised to operate every 20 minutes Mon - Sat daytimes with a Hourly evening timetable. All Evening and Sunday journeys will operate to Arnison Centre whilst the remaining journeys will terminate at Durham (as current)
*New* X19: Darlington - A66 - Stockton - Billingham - A19 - Peterlee - A19 - Dalton Park - Seaham - Sunderland
This service will allow the withdrawal of service X21 and open new links between Sunderland and Stockton. This service will operate hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes. As a Consequence of this new service Route X66 will be reduced to hourly. This unfortunately only means 3 buses an hour between Middlesbrough and Darlington. But 4 buses an hour between Stockton and Darlington.
*New* 9: Durham - Willington - Bishop Auckland - West Auckland - Cockfield - Barnard Castle - Eggleston - Middleton in Teesdale.
This New service will operate Saturdays only on a 2 hour frequency with only 4 journeys in each direction, this service will allow a new link for mainly day trippers and tourists in County Durham.
X21: Darlington - Newton Aycliffe - Sedgefield - Wingate - Peterlee
This service will be revised to operate to its old route, passengers for Sunderland from Sedgefield and Wingate can change to services X19, 22, 23.
X22: On Saturday Daytimes this service will operate into Teesside Park.
X66: Revised to Operate hourly following new service X19. Service X67 will remain up to every 30 minutes Mon - Sat daytimes.
Newcastle:
X9: Blyth - Cramlington - Regent Centre - Newcastle - Metrocentre
This service will be extended to Metrocentre on Saturday daytimes to provide passengers with access to big retail.
X14: Thropton - Rothbury - Longframlington - Morpeth - Pegswood - Ashington.
This service will be rerouted from Morpeth to Ashington, this will have numerous benefits one of which will allow Passengers to have access to big retail at Ashington, also allow drivers to have extra transport for changeovers. Passengers for Newcastle can continue on services 43, 44, X15, X16, X18.
X16: Kirkhill - Morpeth - A1 - Regent Centre - Newcastle - Metrocentre
This service will be extended to Metrocentre on Saturday daytimes to provide passengers with access to big retail.
By these changes passengers from Blyth, Cramlington and Morpeth will have a frequent Saturday service to Metrocentre.
That's my Suggestions!
Decreasing 7 frequency would be a disaster, especially as it's timed to provide a service roughly every 7/8 minutes between Darlington and Newton Aycliffe with the 5/5A, 8 & X21 and not that many travelled to the Arnison Centre when it terminated there in the past.
X19 would be a disaster as dropping a X66 to Middlesbrough in favour of this would cause anger and frustration, especially if people living on North Road or at Harrowgate Hill and Whinfield have only one bus an hour, can't imagine many would go to Sunderland from Darlington, Stockton or Billingham, pointless competition (suicide) with the X9/X10 and the current X21 between Peterlee and Sunderland is often a ghost town.
9 Arriva pulled out of those areas for a reason, the reason being low passenger numbers.
X66 running hourly would be a disaster considering how busy it is, especially with people heading towards Middlesbrough from various parts of Darlington (not just the town centre).
X14 don't see the point, passengers can just connect to the 35.
X9/X16 l where the extra buses that would be required to run on the extensions of these services come from?