(10 Feb 2024, 10:07 pm)Storx wrote Must admit, these baffle me. I know London has it's dodgy areas but I assume that they're not there because there was problems with needles and people injecting on buses which is usually why blue light is used.
I haven't been on them, but blue light in general is unpleasant, infact that colour blue in general is which GNE seemed to love in the past which I'd generally link to water and ice - two things I don't particular want on a bus.
(10 Feb 2024, 10:21 pm)Andreos1 wrote My first thoughts when I saw the blue lights.
Sure it's the same shade blue that Nexus installed in the toilets Park Lane. For the exact same reason.
(10 Feb 2024, 10:07 pm)Storx wrote Must admit, these baffle me. I know London has it's dodgy areas but I assume that they're not there because there was problems with needles and people injecting on buses which is usually why blue light is used.
I haven't been on them, but blue light in general is unpleasant, infact that colour blue in general is which GNE seemed to love in the past which I'd generally link to water and ice - two things I don't particular want on a bus.
(10 Feb 2024, 11:53 pm)solsburian wrote They are rather nasty inside IMHO, along the lines of when Arriva would bring up busses from London and not refurbish them in the past.The blue lights aren't the best , but I travelled on 6217 on X45 last Sunday and found it to be a pleasant ride. Good turn of speed and very few rattles, much less than an E400MMC!
(11 Feb 2024, 12:25 am)Tiger5105 wrote The blue lights aren't the best , but I travelled on 6217 on X45 last Sunday and found it to be a pleasant ride. Good turn of speed and very few rattles, much less than an E400MMC!
(10 Feb 2024, 3:43 pm)mb134 wrote A Facebook post on the North East Bus Enthusiasts page indicated that the same is happening with the X10 MMCs too, or at least 6353. If it is to be believed, then they clear the error then send it out again and it just continues to come up.Wouldn't be issues to this extent if GNE had a single uniformed fleet operating both the X10 & X21 like what Ashington have for the X14/X15/X18/X20 & X21/X22.
It seems similar to Arriva Redcar, where the deckers on the X93 were evidently sent out last summer without having issues rectified as they constantly broke down on consecutive days. Essentially a sign of engineering either not taking defects seriously, or trying to cut corners.
(11 Feb 2024, 5:43 am)L469 YVK wrote Wouldn't be issues to this extent if GNE had a single uniformed fleet operating both the X10 & X21 like what Ashington have for the X14/X15/X18/X20 & X21/X22.
Surely any inefficiencies lost in Derwentside would be made up by reduced lost mileage or recoveries!
Or alternatively. So there's 20x E400MMC.....
- 6336-37 - Consett Spares
- 6338-45 - X30/X31 & X45
- 6346-55 - X10/X21
- 6102 - X10/X21
- 6377 - X10/X21
Then for the StreetDecks......
- 6356-60 - X71/X72
- 6361 - Consett Spare
- 6362-63 - Riverside Spares (no use on X10)
So Derwentside unchanged other than perhaps StreetDecks covering the X71 & X72. Still a suitable spare ratio to cover the X30/X31 & X45.
Yes not 100% perfect either having the 6-Cylinder StreetDeck and a B9TL making up the numbers on the X10 & X21 but a lot better than at current. Any VOR's, simply drop whatever is going onto the X21 then prioritise allocating E400MMC on the X10.
(10 Feb 2024, 11:53 pm)solsburian wrote They are rather nasty inside IMHO, along the lines of when Arriva would bring up busses from London and not refurbish them in the past.
(11 Feb 2024, 5:43 am)L469 YVK wrote Wouldn't be issues to this extent if GNE had a single uniformed fleet operating both the X10 & X21 like what Ashington have for the X14/X15/X18/X20 & X21/X22.
(11 Feb 2024, 8:14 am)Storx wrote Oh, some of them were grim especially in the 00's. The Northern Counties Scania's which were sent up for the 308 were horrid things with leg room for a dwarf and the bus seat buses on a very bizarre incline as understatement. Miles apart from our native examples ignoring the serious body flaws.I think the ex MTL Leyland Olympians that displaced the M37* FTY Palatines when they eventually moved to Ashington & Alnwick were worse!
Mind the ex Midland Fox ones were the worst - https://www.flickr.com/photos/emdjt42/6358669453
Sir we can't find any seat colours that type, well this one has some red in it just throw that on springs to mind. I always wondered where they got them all from.
(11 Feb 2024, 6:41 am)Dan wrote Or…But it's been a historial issue with the X21.
Wouldn’t be issues to this extent if the buses were fixed instead of a fault just being cleared.
Short-term pain for long-term gain.
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(11 Feb 2024, 12:59 pm)L469 YVK wrote But it's been a historial issue with the X21.
- Ex-london B7TL's - although did the job given their age.
- StreetDeck Gen 1's - Constantly off the road.
- B5TL's that got hammered on the X9 & X10.
Arriva Northumbria use E400MMC on their Alnwick & Ashington 'X' routes. Stagecoach use E400MMC on the 685.
(11 Feb 2024, 6:41 am)Dan wrote Or…
Wouldn’t be issues to this extent if the buses were fixed instead of a fault just being cleared.
Short-term pain for long-term gain.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
(11 Feb 2024, 2:30 pm)Malarkey wrote Agreed, Seems to me this is wider issue that isn't just affecting the Streetdecks, it's affecting all vehicle types at Riverside if the engineers are simply doing the above to get Buses back on the road faster.
Higher ups should really be pulling the engineer in question who is signing these off each time to see why they are doing so without fixing the fault and potentially putting colleagues at risk depending on what the fault is, appreciate they may have fixed it previously but if it's a reoccurring fault then it should be investigated further.
(11 Feb 2024, 2:00 pm)Dan wrote I dare say that if you spoke to engineers at Consett, they’d tell you that E400MMCs aren’t the bees knees. No modern bus is really built for heavy endurance work.Well why do Arriva Northumbria use them on the X14/X15/X18/X20 and Stagecoach use them on the 685? Fair enough, no modern decker really comes close to a Leyland Olympian, Volvo Olympian or a DAF/VDL Lowlander for long distance work.
The X21 in all honesty isn’t that bad, and the latest generation StreetDecks are fine on there (as indeed were the B5s).
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(11 Feb 2024, 3:29 pm)L469 YVK wrote Well why do Arriva Northumbria use them on the X14/X15/X18/X20 and Stagecoach use them on the 685? Fair enough, no modern decker really comes close to a Leyland Olympian, Volvo Olympian or a DAF/VDL Lowlander for long distance work.
(11 Feb 2024, 3:51 pm)mb134 wrote Because, if we're honest, what else is there? Out of the current selection on the market they're probably the best option.
Also I could be wrong, but I think some of the main issues with the MMCs are electrical rather than mechanical.
FWIW, I think they're very good buses, but it is clear they have some issues.
(11 Feb 2024, 4:39 pm)Malarkey wrote Wrightbus are still offering the Daimler OM936 7.7L variation of the Wright Streetdeck however other than GNE's order of 6377 and an order from Bus Vannin there hasn't been any other orders for it in the UK, The other one ordered was a Demo for KMB in China which has since returned to the UK and is now with Ensignbus.Well before COVID, the plan was to eventually order either Scania N250UDs E400MMC or OM936 StreetDecks for the X9/X10.
I personally think Go North East made a mistake in 2019/2020 in ordering E400MMC's/OM934 Streetdecks for the X-Lines Services, they should've ordered more of OM936 Streetdecks despite it being an unproven type at the time.
(11 Feb 2024, 8:01 pm)Unber43 wrote MCV seems like a quality bus manufactuer atm, especially there single deckers.It would be a flop if it didn't stop at Chester le Street or New College.
But imo with the X21, I would upp it to every 15 mins and have it 30 mins to West Aukland and every 30 mins to Brandon (or perhaps Darlington as a very limited express and re-numbered X23 and literally stops at Newcastle, Gateshead, Durham, express to Darlington) and cut the 21 off at Durham
(11 Feb 2024, 8:47 pm)V514DFT wrote X21 upped to every 15 minutes, you're living in a dream world if you think that'll ever happenIt would only be between Newcastle and Durham, then it would go on to somewhere else (perhaps Brandon and curtail the 21 there and install charging and give the buses 30 mins there to recharge)
(11 Feb 2024, 9:42 pm)Ambassador wrote It may be a rose tinted glass I’m looking through but I don’t recall as many issues when Chester ran the service. Similar with the Angel (aside the hybrids which was seemingly beyond control)
I can’t see how a policy of buying cheaper intra company stock from London that can barely hit 30mph and deploying them to intensive service work can possibly be helping either mind.
(11 Feb 2024, 9:42 pm)Ambassador wrote It may be a rose tinted glass I’m looking through but I don’t recall as many issues when Chester ran the service. Similar with the Angel (aside the hybrids which was seemingly beyond control)
I can’t see how a policy of buying cheaper intra company stock from London that can barely hit 30mph and deploying them to intensive service work can possibly be helping either mind.
(11 Feb 2024, 8:47 pm)V514DFT wrote X21 upped to every 15 minutes, you're living in a dream world if you think that'll ever happen
(11 Feb 2024, 6:46 pm)Storx wrote They'd be better ordering 12 single deckers for the X21 imo and upping it to every 20 minutes.
If they worked with the 6, they'd offer a nice clean 10 minute service between Bishop and Durham rather than the absolutely crap 20, 10, 10, 20, 0 frequency they offer right now. Absolutely shocking timetabling having 2 buses following each other for 60 minutes and a complete waste of resources. Similar for the 85 should be scrapped and the 6 extended to Barnard Castle considering yet again they follow each other to Cockfield, that should be funded by BSIP as it would be actually be useful. There should be an hourly link between Barnard Castle and Durham imo.
In turn they could scrap the Brandon extension since the 21 has bad enough time delays as it is, getting it away from Neville's Cross would help it massively.
(12 Feb 2024, 2:02 pm)Jimmi wrote Doesn't really matter what you'd do with the X21 South of Durham given how bad the 6 can be for keeping to time quite often, I have often thought about the 6 doing Barney all day but knowing what the 6 is like is off putting, would also make timetabling the other Teesdale routes difficult and likely wouldn't likely save much resources, just a pity that while the 6 & 85 currently run 25-35 mins apart Bishop bound, they're very closely times together Cockfield bound, 85 also serves Evenwood Gate rather than running along Copeland Road to reach Evenwood.