North East Combined Authority multi-modal ticket increases are on the agenda at Cabinet today.

"In addition to the introduction of the NECA adult single bus fare cap, the following BSIP fare caps
are proposed for the period 1 April 2025 to 31 December 2025: 
• The £1 single fare and £3 daily cap for people aged 21 be retained at the existing price points. This is estimated to cost £14.5m for April to December 2025;
• Adult multi-modal daily caps to be adjusted to £5 for Durham (from £4), £6 for Northumberland (from £5), £6.80 for Tyne and Wear (from £6), and £7.50 for the entire  North East CA area (from £6.80).
Cabinet is asked to approve the revised levels of these fare caps, at an estimated cost of £4.4m for April to December 2025."

Source: 14.4 - Page 15 - https://www.northeast-ca.gov.uk/download...y-2025.pdf

It's really disappointing to see these fares raised so soon after the tickets were launched, but I think their hands have been somewhat forced by the single-fare cap being raised, and then refusing to fully support the difference (per other MCAs). Durham at £4 is currently cheaper than two singles. 

I'd have actually liked to see some proper forecasting on fare increases, or a commitment to cap the %, instead of this almost reactive annual process that we've experienced in the commercial world. The Northumberland ticket being £6 or the Regionwide ticket now being £7.50 suddenly doesn't sound as attractive!

The same report also highlights how significant BSIP funding has become, and what it's costing us: "Secured bus services, where BSIP funding significantly augments existing levy-funded budgets. 47% of secured bus mileage in the North East is funded by BSIP revenue funding, at a cost of approximately £16 million per annum. This equates to 12% of the total bus network being reliant on BSIP revenue funding."

More worryingly, there's a highlighted risk of funding beyond 2025-26. The report states:

"Whilst BSIP funding has been confirmed until March 2026, funding from that point onwards is less clear:
• Post-BSIP revenue funding for buses is currently under consideration by the Government.
• The Government’s forthcoming Spending Review is expected to address the problem.
• It is also possible, but far from certain, that the discussion becomes related to single settlement and/or CRSTS2.
• There may be some residual BSIP revenue funds to rollover further into 2026-27, subject to DfT approval."

Not only does this present a risk for the future of the BSIP multi-modal tickets; originally this was a two-year arrangement (2023-25, albeit a lengthy delay to actually launch them), so this is effectively the first annual extension, but it also presents a cliff-edge for a lot of services. I think as we've seen with the minute the £2 cap was raised, some operators won't think twice about swinging the axe about.

I noticed in the NECA Cabinet agenda for 28th January 2025, there's an item for 'Sale of land by Nexus'

Unfortunately it's in the exclusion of the press and public section of the agenda, so there's nothing in the pack containing details.

Does anyone have any idea what this is likely to relate to? I vaguely remember them acquiring some land around 2013 for the QCS Project?

it looks like GNER are sold out for train tickets to London kx on the 15th March!  I am thinking of getting train to Carlisle then train down to London Euston.   Anyone got experience of these operators??  Are they reliable?

Thanks in advance!

I am trying to make a computer generated timetable based on either bustimes data or something else. I was thinking of using R or Python to generate this. 

Any help would be greatly received

I have decided to create a thread as I couldn't find one in the list (?) 

As I put in the GNE thread I had an awful time trying to get from Shiremoor to West Boldon which would take 15-20 mins in car. The 9 is great for people who live on the route or nearby Jarrow Bus Station (and is well used with between 5-15 people on it regularly). 

I will be increasing cross tyne connections while chnaging a few South Tyneside routes to accommodate things...

Some suggestions I have are;

10/11 (Yellow Line) | Cobalt & Silverlink - South Shields, Every 30 mins

26 (Green Line) | Lukes Lane - South Shields, every 30 mins

*Swap the routing around at Primrose & Simonside and onwards to Jarrow (for 10/11 & 26) - improving links and journeys times would still be similar. This also makes the stupidity of being able to miss the 26 in Lukes Lane walk 5-10 mins and catch the one before you missed due to the awful routing/timetabling. This will increase passenger numbers on the 10/11 improving sustainability.

*The 26 route in Hebburn would miss out Finchdale road as it is useless having the 26 & 27 to Jarrow & Shields being on opposite sides of the roads. This would also increase the sustainability of the 27 and can improve evening/Sunday timetables. 

*Extend the 10/11 back up to Cobalt as this was popular pre-covid and was withdrawn during Covid. 

99 (blue) | Wallsend - Sunderland (599)
99A (blue)  | Castletown - Grangetown (99)

*Renumber the 599 to the 99 as it is easier to remember and the 99 to the 99A. I would make sure the links from Castletown to Chester Road are timetabled to coincide a 30 min frequency as there are a fair few people who do this journey often and this will only increase with the cross city links being lost on the *new 35&36. Currently until 2pm there are 4 buses per hour from Ferryboat Lane to Buzz Bingo - Pallion. And it is mad that the 599 & 99 currently are not timetabled together (and are ran by 2 different companies). I would bring back some of the original 99/135&136 around the northern estates and send it up to South bents for improved connections without having to cross the dangerous road at the Wheatsheaf. 

*I would change the 599 significantly...and have it turn left after Nissan and go to Amazon then up past Whitemare pool to Monkton Business park and into Hebburn that way. The route on the map has incorporated as much of the Hebburn loop as possible so not many people would miss out enabling a cross-tyne extension to Wallsend (this used to be 1bph when it was the 9A a long time ago). It significantly increases links easy for cars to do. 


12 (pink) | South Shields | Tyne Dock | ST Hospital | The Lonnen | Cleadon | Boldon | Fellgate | Simonside | Tyne Dock | South Shields
13 (pink) | South Shields | Tyne Dock | Simonside | Fellgate | Boldon | Cleadon | The Lonnen || ST Hospital | Tyne Dock | South Shields

*Both every 30 mins and creates new connections

*As you can see this would be after the 26th Jan changes by GNE so the 35 would still exist (I just couldn't be bothered to draw it as we all know the route). I would up the 26 to half hourly and withdraw the 5. You can merge the 12/X20/30 together to create new links and keep the Fellgate/Boldon to ST Hospital possible.


All frequencies would every 30 mins besides the 99/99A being hourly but joint from Castletown to Royal Hospital. Additionally I would up the 50 to every 20 mins to help over crowding...

According to the Go-Ahead Northern accounts between 1990 and 1996, the company used to own at least 20 tenanted public houses in the north east that they purchased from Scottish & Newcastle, under a "Go-Ahead Leisure" subsidiary. They appeared to sell these public houses at a profit when they became the Go-Ahead Group, following their purchase of London General and Oxford Bus Company.

Does anyone know which public houses that the company owned when they were able to organise a piss-up in a brewery? It doesn't appear to be in the public record, and the fact that they owned pubs is quite well hidden too.

I've used several Stagecoach NE buses this week and, across multiple vehicle types, I've been freezing cold on pretty much every single one. 

The E400 MMCs I've used have been the least cold, but on both of those I was sat on the engine. I reached out to Stagecoach after boarding 27181 on Sunday at 4pm, and they gave a generic answer along the lines of 'it might not have warmed up yet' - despite the fact it had been in service for 7 hours. 

In my experience this seems relatively common with Stagecoach vehicles, the E400s I used at Bluebird were equally baltic in the winter. 

For those who commute using Stagecoach more than I do, is this normal? Or have I just been ridiculously unlucky with the 8 vehicles I've been on this week?

Seen this been mentioned in a few places now. Anyone know what's going on as it's as bad as it's ever been?

Some of the cancellations on certain routes is an absolute disgrace, the 34 in particular (see below).

Not exactly the way to get people using the buses with price increases just coming in to boot.

Don't know if anyone has seen the comments on this page about the recent photos posted of the Northumbria Palatines   !

https://www.facebook.com/groups/16831595...?ref=share

Anyone got any "whacky races" / fast ride stories from any NE operator about Leyland / Volvo Olympians, MCW Metrobuses, Deltas, B10BLE's, Cityzens? Anyone been lucky enough to be riding (or driving) a fast dead run with the saloon lights dimmed and the blinds blanked?

According to the internal newsletter, GNE have 16 "new" coaches arriving for National Express between January and April, with the first six arriving in the next couple of months.

Are these Levante 3As or secondhand from other operators?