(07 Jun 2015, 11:03 am)Jimmi wrote Probably spent so much money on just keeping them sheds on the road. Once had 7444 on service X61 Newton Aycliffe - Scarborough for over two and a half hours and I can't tell you how much pain I was in by the time I arrived, got the backseat on the return.
Goes to show how untrusting Durham have been with the Lowlander's in recent years as in 2011 Volvo Olympian / Northern Counties Palatine bodied 7367 ended up being the regular bus for the 2011 season of the X61 Durham - Scarborough with 7441 being used when it was unable to do the X61. Loved 7367, was sad to see it go.
Much prefer the Enviro 400s to the Gemini's Arriva have, even some of the older E400s have performed better than the Gemini's.
They were shocking like, love how I'm talking about them in past tense, and they're not gone yet!
Olympians are beasts though, there will never be another bus as good as them, remember before 7410/2/3 left Ashington, I had a ride on 7413, it performed amazingly well for a bus of 15/16 years old, and while on 7410 a few weeks before it overtook everything on the A1, cars and a brand new Gemini on one of Blyth's express routes.
Even 7501-6, as much as I don't like them, are better than most of the Gemini's I've been on