(04 Aug 2015, 7:50 pm)R852 PRG wrote The good old X3... What a service! Newcastle to Sunderland express every 30 minutes. Now you've got the X36 every hour. If I remember correctly, the X3 was a dolly mixture service but Renowns were regulars on there. Shame it got axed. I'm sure it would have ideal for a friend of mine to commute to Gateshead every morning, rather than use the Metro.
Yae just tryna wind Greg in Weardale up now!
Service X3 lost the Mercs and was downgraded (sorry - I know you'll think it's the opposite way round) to Volvo B10BLE operation, with 5325-5327 being re-allocated to "Silver Arrows" 2A/2C, which was upgraded to a combined 10-minute frequency, opposed to the previous 15-minute frequency. The X3 went through various forms after this, but it ultimately led to its demise.