(30 Jan 2023, 5:05 am)Dan wrote Results are expected to be announced to operators this week with formal award 10 days after that.


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(30 Jan 2023, 5:05 am)Dan wrote Results are expected to be announced to operators this week with formal award 10 days after that.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

(30 Jan 2023, 8:58 pm)L469 YVK wrote So what will happen if the W2 goes ahead and Arriva wash their hands of the 51 between Holystone and Newcastle?

Will Nexus then have to open another tender process to replace parts if not all of the affected route?

(30 Jan 2023, 9:13 pm)RobinHood wrote Don't count your chickens yet.

Apparently the consultation has been wholly negative around the planned 51 changes and it wouldn't surprise me if Nexus and Arriva are hammering out a last minute deal to continue as is.

(30 Jan 2023, 9:13 pm)RobinHood wrote Don't count your chickens yet.

Apparently the consultation has been wholly negative around the planned 51 changes and it wouldn't surprise me if Nexus and Arriva are hammering out a last minute deal to continue as is.

(31 Jan 2023, 1:05 am)Aaron21 wrote Can you blame them. Let's cut the 51 from Whitley Bay and finish it in an area that has no bus service to Whitley Bay or the other section of the route or to walk ages for a metro. They clearly didn't give a slight care and just thought let's cut it at Holystone. Idea to extend it to Northumberland Park or even finish it at Shiremoor to at least give them a close metro link to the area the 51 servers. No wonder the 51 consultation has been negative.

(31 Jan 2023, 6:30 am)L469 YVK wrote Best option would be for an hourly extension of the 55 to Whitley Bay via Holystone to Earsdon then the W2 route.

The hourly 55 and 54 could then perhaps interwork with each other.......or the 54/55 interwork with the 57/57A.

As for Newcastle - Wiltshire Drive, that could easily be sorted if Nexus/GNE/Arriva/Stagecoach work together to produce a stable set of changes.

(01 Feb 2023, 8:05 am)RMF1254 wrote Extending the 55 would bring back the 355 which would be a slower link to Newcastle than the 51.
The huge East Benton Rise / Fallow Park development would have no direct bus to Newcastle.
The link from Wiltshire Drive would be lost, the previous 3 buses an hour to nothing in less than a year.

(01 Feb 2023, 9:54 am)L469 YVK wrote 310 would replace Wiltshire Drive (with the 22 every 20 minutes replacing the 311 Hadrian Park - Newcastle link).

Benton Rise is only a short walk to Wiltshire Drive if Nexus added an extra stop.

309 likewise via High Farm & Station Road.

306 stays on the Coast Road with the 308 and all services every 20 mins each.

(01 Feb 2023, 10:37 am)Storx wrote 335 Withdrawn. Both routes cover the unique sections of both routes, the 335 as it is one messy route without purpose and duplicating commercial routes for most of it. Commercial routes which aren't particularly doing well either.

(01 Feb 2023, 9:54 am)L469 YVK wrote 310 would replace Wiltshire Drive (with the 22 every 20 minutes replacing the 311 Hadrian Park - Newcastle link).

Benton Rise is only a short walk to Wiltshire Drive if Nexus added an extra stop.

309 likewise via High Farm & Station Road.

306 stays on the Coast Road with the 308 and all services every 20 mins each.

(01 Feb 2023, 10:37 am)Storx wrote If you're going to do stuff like that you'd be better doing something like:

R1 - https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Whitley+Bay/54.9761989,-1.6157677/@55.0142935,-1.5562364,7022m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m59!4m58!1m55!1m1!1s0x487e6c207152e101:0x118a2ccfbe535cf4!2m2!1d-1.4512989!2d55.046389!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4679029!2d55.0545408!3s0x487e6dcc29121575:0xad4891344acf705a!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4775539!2d55.0532317!3s0x487e6dc51cf38c17:0xcaa2d38f16f1213f!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4747883!2d55.0427576!3s0x487e6dd849a16d27:0xc5526ff5794fd854!3m4!1m2!1d-1.5123422!2d55.036074!3s0x487e6e01beb57f6d:0x6d79fb6a35869494!3m4!1m2!1d-1.5142353!2d55.0284121!3s0x487e71e2ad34c6c5:0x4a167ee1b27a6d37!3m4!1m2!1d-1.5292537!2d55.0259341!3s0x487e71ef9b075fe5:0x3fe3f2da74217996!3m4!1m2!1d-1.5489192!2d55.0118143!3s0x487e71bc733e60db:0x85163de9fbc05293!3m4!1m2!1d-1.5660422!2d55.0112015!3s0x487e71a730e23e75:0x61db961a3e45da4d!3m4!1m2!1d-1.5908709!2d55.013191!3s0x487e711437c6ee69:0xf00828fd4d28d82b!3m4!1m2!1d-1.5942721!2d55.0153233!3s0x487e71156a333973:0x24bd178f40fa0955!1m0!3e0 - Hourly
R2 - https://www.google.com/maps/dir/55.0086625,-1.44907/55.0325391,-1.5183996/@55.0183648,-1.5101373,13.21z/data=!4m24!4m23!1m20!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4589623!2d55.0115109!3s0x487e6e589f1a13e9:0xada0de64e194644!3m4!1m2!1d-1.472583!2d55.0206703!3s0x487e6e6879aec599:0x37e71b4c2ef29999!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4698502!2d55.0261737!3s0x487e6e65a57d5a33:0xd7ade7b120f5fb89!3m4!1m2!1d-1.4887024!2d55.0303634!3s0x487e6e0d6ab04619:0x96815c4a0a677144!1m0!3e0 - Hourly

335 Withdrawn. Both routes cover the unique sections of both routes, the 335 as it is one messy route without purpose and duplicating commercial routes for most of it. Commercial routes which aren't particularly doing well either.

(02 Feb 2023, 9:16 am)RMF1254 wrote East Benton Rise is not a short walk from Wiltshire Drive and it’s uphill going north. 22 would also be a bit of trundle through the east end of Newcastle from Hadrian Park, not exactly direct. Don’t get me wrong, I would love the 310 to go along Wiltshire Drive, GNE should have done that years ago with the 305 but thinking of new developments such as East Benton Rise, they have been given a bus early on in the development and to take it away is not good enough.

(02 Feb 2023, 9:29 pm)L469 YVK wrote A few shortcuts through the top of Hadrian Lodge and an extra stop from Nexus, it's only 500m to the entrance of the estate.

As for the 22, the journey from Hadrian Park starting anti-clockwise at the Bush would take 38 minutes to Market Street East / John Dobson Street / Pilgrim Street. The 57/58 before the 311 came about took around 30-35 mins. Plus although there'd be people losing out with Haymarket, those who want to be 'further in' will benefit.

(03 Feb 2023, 10:08 am)RMF1254 wrote Do you know Hadrian Lodge, I wouldn’t be taking those shortcuts in the dark. Unlit, gravel path, 500 metres uphill as you say to the entrance of the estate, what about those ones near The Range at the top of Station Rd, very unlikely to attract passengers. There would be nowhere for an extra stop between the existing ones as the road is in a curve. When the consultation went out about the development it was hailing the 51 as a bus to Newcastle plus the 42/42a (or whatever it was then) all with useful links. They would be left with 335/342.
Is this all to help with the so called 5 minute frequency on the Coast Road? Yesterday I followed a 310 and 311 together up Station Road and they’re supposed to be more than 5 minutes apart - picking passengers up maybe?

(03 Feb 2023, 10:08 am)RMF1254 wrote Is this all to help with the so called 5 minute frequency on the Coast Road? Yesterday I followed a 310 and 311 together up Station Road and they’re supposed to be more than 5 minutes apart - picking passengers up maybe?

(03 Feb 2023, 4:28 pm)Ambassador wrote I believe the point of the 335 is to provide access to 2 key employment centres at Cobalt and Quorum/Balliol

Although clearly a pre-pandemic suitable route - it still has value to people needing to get to those locations which don't have the as high work from home profile as other areas

(03 Feb 2023, 4:28 pm)Ambassador wrote I believe the point of the 335 is to provide access to 2 key employment centres at Cobalt and Quorum/Balliol

Although clearly a pre-pandemic suitable route - it still has value to people needing to get to those locations which don't have the as high work from home profile as other areas

(03 Feb 2023, 4:28 pm)Ambassador wrote I believe the point of the 335 is to provide access to 2 key employment centres at Cobalt and Quorum/Balliol

Although clearly a pre-pandemic suitable route - it still has value to people needing to get to those locations which don't have the as high work from home profile as other areas

(03 Feb 2023, 7:18 pm)Storx wrote Is there any section of the 335 that actually provides a unique link to Cobalt, as far as I'm aware the 53, 54 and 309 all provide a link on 90% of the route and they're not far walking distance from other areas and the first two are really struggling.

Open question that I'm not 100% sure.

(03 Feb 2023, 7:55 pm)Thomas12 wrote Hadrian Park and High farm don’t have a bus to cobalt. High Farm has the 310, but this only goes to Cobalt South and not into the Business Park. 

Four Lane Ends also doesn’t although not sure how many people would use the 335 from there.

(04 Feb 2023, 12:31 am)Rapidsnap wrote If they built a bus only road between Hadrian Park and Cobalt where your red line is, the bus companies would be laughing.

It means GNE could divert the 309 through Hadrian Park and into Cobalt that way which removes the need for the 311 going to Hadrian Park. The 310 will still serve the stops at Cobalt South.

Honestly Hadrian Park is probably one of the biggest headaches for bus companies in this area as there is only one way in and out, and to serve it takes around 5 minutes.

(03 Feb 2023, 10:35 am)Storx wrote The problem is they're all hourly bus services and no-one wants an hourly bus service as it's unusable unless you happen to start or end work exactly when it's due or live at somewhere like Rothbury where it's understandable. 

Benton Road as a whole needs work on it. The whole area is underserved but it's difficult when the Metro stops at random parts of it.

(04 Feb 2023, 9:53 am)RMF1254 wrote The hourly 51 is fine by me although it was better half hourly with the 51a. So would it better having no bus or an hourly one? I know what people who use the 51 would say.

(03 Feb 2023, 10:11 pm)IStorx wrote Aye fair on Hadrian Park, ironically if you built a bridge across there it's in walking distance.

It's the sort of place if you want serious active travel then it should be. A cycle network like below would make active travel actually attractive imo (yellow already built) especially if there was decent lockers (or the ability to use them on the Metro) at the Metro stations.



Instead as usual everything that's built is focused on Newcastle instead as if no-one else goes anywhere else.

(04 Feb 2023, 10:14 am)Storx wrote The 311 tbh would solve Wiltshire Drive and give them a better service aswell.