Open top buses should be nowhere near commercial work.

It might be fun for a kid but if I was using a bus I don't want an open top bus with it's plastic seats and grotty interior.

Can't stand it from both Stagecoach and GNE but admit the second has seemed to stop it lately.

(20 Jun 2024, 12:39 pm)V514DFT wrote And the 18

(Yesterday, 2:48 pm)DeltaMan wrote Early morning service within Newcastle are relatively poor, period.

One of the few weaknesses in the Busways network in Newcastle is they don't run pretty much before 0600. The 30/31, 37/38 for example should really have pre 6am departures Monday to Saturday. 

Appreciate they are different markets, but you can get from Chesterfield to Matlock on a X17 Stagecoach service before 06:00, but you can't travel from Benwell to the City Centre at the same time!

The 62 from Killingworth at 0500’& 0630 is my way to work some days. There is 38A which starts at 0426 from cowgate and Whickham view but apart from these it’s largely useless

(Yesterday, 4:59 pm)Acky81 wrote I spoke to Stagecoach today and they said they operate 4 buses but no specific board. Seriously what’s the point

Very rare for all four to be out at once too though I think it happened this week.  They did try timed boards last year or possibly the year before but I think unreliability made it just as pointless as random operation.  Should say as well of course if you look at bustimes on the morning you will see the board and runs they are allocated to that day (subject to being swapped off) so not the end of the world.

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(Yesterday, 7:44 pm)Storx wrote Open top buses should be nowhere near commercial work.

It might be fun for a kid but if I was using a bus I don't want an open top bus with it's plastic seats and grotty interior.

Beg to differ on this, plenty of times I've heard people (families with kids, and adult couples without kids etc) over the moon to see an open topper turn up and in contrast don't think I've ever heard anyone moan about one appearing.  It might be different once the new electrics arrive but the standard stuff chucked on the Es currently is hardly luxury.

(Yesterday, 9:42 pm)stagecoachbusdepot wrote Beg to differ on this, plenty of times I've heard people (families with kids, and adult couples without kids etc) over the moon to see an open topper turn up and in contrast don't think I've ever heard anyone moan about one appearing.  It might be different once the new electrics arrive but the standard stuff chucked on the Es currently is hardly luxury.

These aren't commuters who have been to work etc though and are just leisure users. 

Someone leaving work doesn't want nonsense like that, they want to go home after a hard day's work. 

By all means run a summer service somewhere but it shouldn't be in service in frontline service. They'd arguably be better doing a shuttle from somewhere like Seaburn to Sunderland or South Shields to Ocean Park so the usual buses aren't slammed with beach goers.

(Yesterday, 9:52 pm)Storx wrote These aren't commuters who have been to work etc though and are just leisure users. 

Someone leaving work doesn't want nonsense like that, they want to go home after a hard day's work. 

By all means run a summer service somewhere but it shouldn't be in service in frontline service. They'd arguably be better doing a shuttle from somewhere like Seaburn to Sunderland or South Shields to Ocean Park so the usual buses aren't slammed with beach goers.

People can be on their way home from work and be exposed to a little joy, miserable doesn’t need to be the default state.

(Yesterday, 9:52 pm)Storx wrote These aren't commuters who have been to work etc though and are just leisure users. 

Someone leaving work doesn't want nonsense like that, they want to go home after a hard day's work. 

By all means run a summer service somewhere but it shouldn't be in service in frontline service. They'd arguably be better doing a shuttle from somewhere like Seaburn to Sunderland or South Shields to Ocean Park so the usual buses aren't slammed with beach goers.

Not sure how you can know they aren't commuters as they are just punters who get the bus - could be for any reason.  As they aren't advertised runs I'm not talking about people seeking out open toppers.  I am talking about avergae person in queue for bus, open topper arrives, punter happy (or indifferent) not angry is my experience.

Not sure why you think an open topper is stopping anyone getting home after a hard day's work either.  It is a bus running the advertised route.  Fair enough if it is pissing down and they have to sit upstairs in the rain but that doesn't seem to be the argument you are making so genuinely a bit baffled by what there is to moan about.

Also genuinely curious now, I'm not sure what the commuter versus leisure split is on the E routes.

(Yesterday, 10:00 pm)James101 wrote People can be on their way home from work and be exposed to a little joy, miserable doesn’t need to be the default state.

(Yesterday, 10:50 pm)stagecoachbusdepot wrote Not sure how you can know they aren't commuters as they are just punters who get the bus - could be for any reason.  As they aren't advertised runs I'm not talking about people seeking out open toppers.  I am talking about avergae person in queue for bus, open topper arrives, punter happy (or indifferent) not angry is my experience.

Not sure why you think an open topper is stopping anyone getting home after a hard day's work either.  It is a bus running the advertised route.  Fair enough if it is pissing down and they have to sit upstairs in the rain but that doesn't seem to be the argument you are making so genuinely a bit baffled by what there is to moan about.

Also genuinely curious now, I'm not sure what the commuter versus leisure split is on the E routes.

Going to reply together but I'm not scrooge but I don't really need to explain why a commuter wouldn't particularly be happy with 20+ year old, with no roof, with plastic seats which are grubby as an understatement and can't hear yourself think because they're an awful Trident. 

It also doesn't make sense because the people who actually want to ride one can't either because they're just completely random. 

I really don't understand why they're still here personally, 25 year old nearly, unreliable and they have no real purpose.

Personally I'd love to see them if they're going to keep them on a summer special doing something like South Shields Ferry - South Shields Interchange - Ocean Beach. The links are pretty confusing for a random who never comes down.

You may be in luck - this is their last year if the rumour mill is to be believed. They only just scraped through their MOTs last year due to emissions (think it's less CO2 and more the amount of crap they kick out the exhaust sometimes - I had 17239 on wed and gassed a few cars, which was very entertaining I'll admit).

To answer above - all 4 were out on Wednesday and all 4 did the full running board without issue.

To be honest, I think they should have a specific open top service in the summer, Sunderland to Shields but sticking entirely to the coast road the entire way. It'd take some pressure off the E buses as well as not having to experience the joys of Horsley Hill or Laygate on an open top bus.

(1 hour ago)deanmachine wrote To be honest, I think they should have a specific open top service in the summer, Sunderland to Shields but sticking entirely to the coast road the entire way. It'd take some pressure off the E buses as well as not having to experience the joys of Horsley Hill or Laygate on an open top bus.

This is what we keep saying.