(30 Mar 2016, 1:56 pm)Dan wrote I was quite surprised to read on a Facebook group that, to update the Next Stop Announcement media at Darlington, all "MAX" specification vehicles are kept off the road on a Sunday?

There's very few enthusiasts that can appreciate how time-consuming a job updating the media is, but as I have quite a large amount of experience in doing these updates for another operator, I can understand completely the wish to update all buses in one go, rather than dribs and drabs. What I couldn't understand is why Arriva don't pay for staff to come in on a night, when all buses are in the depot, to update the media? That way, passengers aren't 'inconvenienced' with a lower-spec vehicle being allocated.

Not sure what other situations there have been, resulting in all "MAX" vehicles being off the road, but the above situation certainly could have been avoided...

(30 Mar 2016, 1:58 pm)scania driver wrote As someone posted recently, "it's just a case of what is handy in the depot". Or is it just a case of laziness. Makes a mockery of the whole branding thing.

(30 Mar 2016, 2:38 pm)Jimmi wrote Some sparkle on the X12 this afternoon:

1479 replaced a Gemini on the 15:20 Durham - Middlesbrough journey.

7521 on the 15:20 Durham - Newcastle journey (running around 15 minutes late).

(30 Mar 2016, 2:16 pm)Cock Robin wrote 2826 was in Thornaby yesterday with Not In Service on screen. Don't know what it was doing there.

(30 Mar 2016, 1:56 pm)Dan wrote I was quite surprised to read on a Facebook group that, to update the Next Stop Announcement media at Darlington, all "MAX" specification vehicles are kept off the road on a Sunday?

There's very few enthusiasts that can appreciate how time-consuming a job updating the media is, but as I have quite a large amount of experience in doing these updates for another operator, I can understand completely the wish to update all buses in one go, rather than dribs and drabs. What I couldn't understand is why Arriva don't pay for staff to come in on a night, when all buses are in the depot, to update the media? That way, passengers aren't 'inconvenienced' with a lower-spec vehicle being allocated, but it's still possible to catch every bus at the same time.

Not sure what other situations there have been, resulting in all "MAX" vehicles being off the road, but the above situation certainly could have been avoided...

(30 Mar 2016, 1:58 pm)scania driver wrote As someone posted recently, "it's just a case of what is handy in the depot". Or is it just a case of laziness. Makes a mockery of the whole branding thing.

(30 Mar 2016, 2:14 pm)GX03 SVC wrote When the leading driver comes in on the morning, they have to put all the vehicles on route they're supposed to be on. They have a list of the route branded vehicles. All allocations, unless the branded vehicles have to be covered with a wrongly branded vehicle are correct.

Some don't realise that, during the day, vehicles have to be replaced with whatever is spare, if a vehicle has had to be substituted with the official spare vehicle when the leading driver does the allocations on the morning, then a wrongly branded vehicle (or if you're really lucky, if a correctly branded vehicle becomes available) will have to be allocated. Vehicles could be replaced due to a defect, late running or could have to be removed to cover a higher-specification vehicle on another route.

So, if all of the vehicles have entered service on the morning and a one needs replacing, then yes, "its a case of what is handy in the depot".

In the case of the non-MAX service on the X66 on Sunday... this seems to be the only time that this has happened to update the media. If they want to do it on the Sunday, then they do whatever is not required due to the PVR reduction then do the rest on the next Sunday where the vehicles have not been updated stay at the depot... Disgraceful from Darlington management in my opinion.

(30 Mar 2016, 2:53 pm)tyresmoke wrote Out on a test run possibly? It's on 7s today.
2804 is the one missing...

(30 Mar 2016, 2:38 pm)Jimmi wrote 7521 on the 15:20 Durham - Newcastle journey (running around 15 minutes late).

(30 Mar 2016, 7:09 pm)LeeSinclair wrote 2841 on the 1/5/5A/19.

(30 Mar 2016, 9:22 pm)Stuartphin1639 wrote What time? If it was the 18:35/45 then it works off a 3A running board then does:

18:45 5A to bishop
19:50 5A to darlo
20:55 66 to whinfield
21:20 3 to skerne park
21:45 5A to bishop
22:50 5A to Darlington

Then the driver does staff bus

(31 Mar 2016, 10:25 am)Cock Robin wrote 7520 on X12.

(31 Mar 2016, 8:31 am)Stuartphin1639 wrote 1491 on the X66/X67 again

(31 Mar 2016, 12:57 pm)Michael Euston wrote Non-Sapphire pulsar 1491 on East Cleveland 5/5a this lunchtime. Guessing things are still bad on Cargo Fleet Lane?

(31 Mar 2016, 1:05 pm)Kuyoyo wrote It's actually 1492 - on the same board 1491 was on yesterday


It does look that way - 1558 meanwhile is parked in the layover bay in Middlesbrough.

(31 Mar 2016, 2:29 pm)Stuartphin1639 wrote My eyes decived me, now you've said that I remember seeing the random love heart on the front panel

(31 Mar 2016, 3:04 pm)Davie wrote 35 branded Streetlite - X14
4659 - X21
#classicashington

(31 Mar 2016, 3:04 pm)Davie wrote 35 branded Streetlite - X14
4659 - X21
#classicashington

(31 Mar 2016, 3:28 pm)northern156 wrote I thought we were going to stop with these immature hashtags?