10.08 X14 Morpeth Bus Station to Newcastle Haymarket ANE 1792
After asking last night which X14 was the MPD operated trip, circumstances meant that I had no option but to suffer this to Newcastle (even more gutting was the fact I missed the 9.53 X15 by seconds, operated by 7514), I sat at the back, and regretted it almost instantly. Every time the driver accelerated it sounded like it was going to blow up, it was making an unbelievably loud noise, even just driving out of Morpeth. The free WiFi was a blessing, it made the journey slightly more tolerable. General ride comfort was okay, although I was shook half to death every time we went over a slight bump in the road. We arrived in Newcastle 2 minutes early, where 7514 was only just leaving on the X15, it seems that this run was one of few 'on time' Morpeth express runs from then on, thanks to the A1, and various other factors. I must say, the sooner the MPD runs are re-numbered 'X16' the better, 1792 was packed, I heard a few people saying later on that they were going to avoid the X14 as it was always "one of the small buses, and you can never get a seat", not a great image, especially for a supposed MAX service, they didn't really think that one through did they? I really can't see these MPD's lasting too much longer, they all sound like they're going to give up, even when trundling around a town, never mind flat out on the A1.
A good few hours in Newcastle followed, before I returned to the Haymarket, waiting to be told whether to go to Bedlington or Morpeth
13.04 X22 Newcastle Haymarket to Bedlington Red Lion ANE 7524
The text arrived,I was to head to Bedlington to meet with my friends, as walked into Haymarket, I saw people running into the X21/22 stand, however as I was carrying a few things, and didn't really fancy running in public, I continued walking at a fairly rapid pace, I got to the stand just as 7525's doors were closing, and it headed off to Newbiggin on the 12.54 X21. I sat down, thinking I'd be waiting a good five minutes before my X22 turned up, however only a few minutes later, the headlights of my X22 shone through the windows of the vehicle in the adjacent stand. I was very happy 7524 turned up actually, as by this point my phone was down to 6% battery, and I know that the plugs on 7524 work very well. I boarded, sat at the front of upstairs (amazing leg room!), and sat back. As we got to Regent Centre, we caught up with an X10/11 duo, both hideously late, and thanks to a diversion through Wide Open/Seaton Burn, we were stuck behind the Gemini's to the Seaton Burn roundabout, how slow can they be, no wonder one was 18 minutes late! I'd take my E400 any day over one of those heaps! After we got way from the Blyth 'expresses', we thundered along the road to Northumberlandia, where we got stuck behind two lorries, meaning that we arrived in Bedlington a minute or two late. The contrast between this journey and the one on 1792 was unbelievable, 7524 seemed very capable, smooth and powerful, with the added bonus of comfortable seating and sockets, while 1792 seemed to be constantly straining, in pain almost
I walked down the stairs, off the bus and watched as 7524 powered down Bedlington Front Street towards its destination of Ashington. Thank you for reading, I appreciate it was only two journeys, but at nearly 12PM(12AM?), the night before results day, I'm doing anything I can to avoid sleeping...
Cheers 