Saturday 19th September 2015

Enjoyed an excellent day out on a North East Explorer ticket today. I accomplished my only real aim of the day, to use all of the Explorer's facilities; the Shields Ferry, Northern Rail trains between Newcastle and Sunderland, the Tyne & Wear Metro, and each of the three major bus operators (Go North East, Arriva and Stagecoach). Read on to find out more...

#X12 – Chester-le-Street Black Horse to Gateshead Transport Interchange – (08:08 --- 08:34) – Arriva North East 1442 – VDL SB200/Wright Pulsar 2 – ''MAX''
Last night, I made my mind up to catch the 09:30 Northern Rail service from Newcastle to Sunderland, which meant I would have to catch a slightly earlier bus into Newcastle then I usually would. Eventually decided to catch the 08:12 ''Angel'' 21 from the Black Horse, which would get me to Eldon Square for just before 09:00, where I could then catch the Metro to Central Station. After an 07:00 alarm, I left my house at 07:45, allowing a casual walk into Chester-le-Street for the 08:12 service. I arrived at the Black Horse bus stop at 08:00; I checked the timetables in the bus stop and discovered that the Arriva X12 was actually due before my planned 21, at 08:08. In two minds as to catch the X12 due in a few minutes or wait a bit longer for the 21, when I saw one of Stockton's ''MAX'' Pulsars coming along, I decided to go with it. The driver seemed to be quite a happy chap who said good morning as I boarded. This was my first Explorer ticket to be bought on a non-Go North East bus; when I tried to fit the Arriva ticket into my Virgin West Coast ticket wallet (acquired from Sean a couple of weeks ago and now an essential), I found it was too big, meaning I had to fold it in half. When I did, I noticed some McDonalds vouchers on the back. I'm really fond of the Arriva Pulsars; I find they're a nice bus to ride on. Some examples are still only a few years old, which some might put under the ''plastic'' category, but I think they're the opposite. Nearly always an enjoyable journey on one.

Tyne & Wear Metro – Gateshead to Central Station – (08:36 --- 08:39) – Tyne and Wear Metrocars 4066 and 4012 - ''Refurbished''
The loading remained no more than twenty passengers throughout, I sat just below the step up towards the rear, and decided to bail at Gateshead and catch the Metro from there. Descending into the Metro station that is located beneath the bus interchange, I passed through the unattended ticket barriers with my Explorer ticket and began walking down to platform level. At this time, an announcement came on, stating that due to a points failure in the Pelaw area, services were suspended between there and Brockley Whins, advising that passengers use the Go North East 9 service as an alternative. Conveniently, as I was within a few steps from the platform, I heard the rumble of a Metro before one shot out of the tunnel and ground to a halt. The leading car was 4066, with 4012 on the rear. I just stood for this journey, as were several others, because the seats were more-or-less all taken and the journey was just to the next station, a two minute hop. After alighting 4012, which I took the journey in, I headed up to the station itself, well ahead of schedule thanks to catching the X12. Decided to head straight through to the platforms to get some photos of the trains. A Virgin Trains East Coast service was on it's platform but began rolling away just as I got within reach of a photograph. Was a nice surprise to see 67020 in the Thunderbird siding, as it's nearly always 67024 when I'm at Newcastle Central. Northern Rail's 156475 was present in one of the smaller platforms, so I got a photograph of that before heading towards Costa for a small Hot Chocolate to take-out. I took a seat on Platform 3 and read a newspaper that was present, before heading over to Platform 5 at 09:20.  

2N10 – Newcastle Central Station to Sunderland Station – (09:27 --- 09:54) – Northern Rail 156463 – Class 156 ''Sprinter'' DMU
I didn't have long to wait before I sighted a Class 156 coming into the station; I'd never travelled on one prior to today, so wasn't sure what to expect. All I'd gathered was that they were ten times nicer than Class 142s. The two-coach set came a stop in Platform 5, the numbers on board didn't look massive and only about twenty people were on the platform and edging towards the train to board; a lot of people left the train before we started boarding. I sat in the leading carriage, simply to get a better view of what was coming ahead of us. I've travelled Newcastle-Sunderland three times now with an Explorer, the other two have both been Pacers (142090 and 142086 in a pair, then the god awful 142089...), so to receive a 156 was nice. Shortly after departure on-time, the guard came into the carriage and announced that he was coming around for tickets. When he reached my seat, I handed him my Explorer ticket. He made a funny face at it, to which I assumed was uncertainty, so I told him that it was valid on Northern Rail services between Newcastle and Sunderland. The guard then got closer to me and told me that it was an Arriva ticket that I had, and that the train I was on was a Northern Rail train. I offered to show him the website and proof that it was valid, to which he said was fine. When I showed him the writing about the Explorer ticket being valid on trains between Newcastle and Sunderland, he explained that it meant the Tyne & Wear Metro and not Northern Rail. I proceeded to try and explain that it meant mainline rail services, and not a light rail system... I think in the end, he just ran out of arguments, so he just smiled and said that he would let me have it. One thing I'd like to see Northern Rail actually do is train (pun intended) their guards to understand the concept of an Explorer. At least the guard was nice enough about it, I'm going to claim victory on it though...

#20 – Sunderland, Park Lane Interchange to South Shields Market Place – (10:09 --- 10:45) – Go North East 4972 – Scania L94UB/Wright Solar – ''Prince Bishops''
Aside from the guard taking initial issue with my ticket, I really enjoyed my ride on 156463. The seating was absolutely brilliant, the train wasn't busy in the slightest, and the train itself was fantastic. Whenever we pulled away after stopping at a signal or another obstruction, it was fast off the mark and was speeding along again within fifteen seconds. Really enjoyed it, as York was a successful trip, I'm thinking of doing Carlisle at some point in 2016, most likely at Easter, so I'll hopefully land a 156 on the train that I'll catch there. The 685 just puts me off as the scenery of the Tyne Valley Line seems far superior to a couple of hours on the A69. Also, with the popular 4663 no longer in service, the chances of a crummy OmniCity showing up seems very high. As I know literally nothing of Sunderland City Centre, I managed to navigate my way to Park Lane Interchange using my Google Maps app. Turned out I'd just missed the 10:02 20A to South Shields, so I hung around to catch the 10:12 20. 4972 was the ''Prince Bishops'' Solar operating this run; I sat at the back. Around Cleadon, a young girl, who looked only a couple of years older than me, got on with a young boy no older than three. The boy addressed her as ''mam'', so I'm guessing it was a teenage pregnancy. Good god. This one had a weakened ZF gearbox so I was naturally let down by it. Arrival at South Shields was just about on-time, and I began walking down to the Ferry Landing to catch the 11:15 Ferry across the river.

Shields Ferry – South Shields Ferry Landing to North Shields Ferry Landing – (11:12 --- 11:21) – ''Spirit of the Tyne''
I'd never travelled on the Shields Ferry before, so it was something I was somewhat looking forward to doing. One of Stagecoach's new ''Connect the Dots'' Enviro300s was parked up with nobody on board, so I took advantage and got some photos of it. I was almost tempted to have a ride on one, seeing as I had the correct ticket to do so, but reminded myself that I was here for the Ferry. There was a building site near the landing, so after navigating my way around it, I walked across the little bridge and onto the landing itself for 10:55. A couple of people were already there; Pride of the Tyne was moored next to the landing and I looked across the river to see the other one, Spirit of the Tyne, over at North Shields. Shortly after 11:00, it pulled away from North Shields and began the crossing over to South Shields. In this time, about twenty people, myself included, had gathered to catch the service across to North Shields, a good number of which had bikes with them. I didn't realise the Ferry catered for bikes nor was there a demand for it. Once the load from the other side had dispersed, we began boarding. I showed the crew member that was sat at the entrance desk my Explorer, who seemed alright with it. When one elderly man came on with a bike just before departure, struggling to find his pass, he seemed a little snappy with him and told him to go and put his bike away before coming back. He just read a newspaper for the entire crossing. I quite enjoyed my ride on the Ferry, it was punctual and over before I knew it. Was quite nice to be gliding across the river at a speed. When I was on land again, I began walking up to the town centre.

#310 – North Shields Town Centre to Newcastle, Haymarket Bus Station – (11:37 --- 12:30) – Go North East 6108 – Volvo B9TL/Wright Gemini 2 – ''Cobalt Clipper''
I looked around to try and locate the 333 service, but it wasn't there. As I knew a lot of the people on board would be going for that, I just decided to walk up. The bank is an absolute killer, my feet were hurting by the time I was within sight of Rudyerd Street. No buses were present but a ''Cobalt Connect'' OmniCity, 5244, appeared with a 19 service to Northumberland Park. I crossed the road to get a photo, as the sun was in a good position. The photo came out fantastic and it's now on my Flickr for those who would like to see. Running a few minutes late, ''Cobalt Clipper'' branded 6108 rounded the corner and came to a stop. I was half expecting a driver changeover, but the present driver just nodded as a sign for me to board. Luckily I had the upper deck to myself, so opted for my favourite seat at the front, just above the driver. WiFi worked brilliantly as did the plug sockets. The seating was comfortable and I relaxed into it. About ten minutes into the journey, I saw a few police cars were surrounding an area, with some bits cordened off. A pair of smart looking Audi A5s and a BMW 320 series were present; I didn't even realise such cars were within the police force but they looked incredibly smart in the livery. At the next stop, a woman and a little girl boarded, sitting opposite me at the front. The little girl just kept asking sackless questions to the mother, who looked thick as a brick, and a lengthy driver changeover near Percy Main depot (I'm guessing) just made for an irritating journey; which people boarding in numbers along the Coast Road... When I saw Haymarket, I was relieved.  

#52 – Newcastle, Haymarket Bus Station to Four Lane Ends Interchange – (13:07 --- 13:31) – Arriva North East 4520 – Volvo B10BLE/Alexander ALX300 – ''52/53 Sub-Branding''
After exiting Haymarket and briefly speaking to Gary Devlin and David Jobe, I began walking around to Monument to head to Waterstones. Afterwards, I returned to Haymarket. An Arriva ALX300 was at the top of the bus station, boarding passengers, so I went with that. Sat at the back to enjoy the full B10BLE engine; the legroom was absolutely fantastic but sadly the engine wasn't as nice as one of Go North East's. A woman driver alighted at Jesmond depot, and from there nobody really alighted or boarded. When I saw Four Lane Ends coming, I pressed the bell and made my way to the front of the vehicle. 

Tyne & Wear Metro – Four Lane Ends to Haymarket – (13:35 --- 13:48) – Tyne & Wear Metrocars 4012 and 4066 – ''Refurbished''
Following the identification of the ALX300 as 4520, and a loop of Four Lane Ends Interchange (nothing of interest was there, a pretty dismal place), I decided to head down into the Metro Station. When I reached platform level, I saw about twenty people were awaiting the next Metro; the majority were wearing Newcastle United football shirts. I could see a Metro was approaching, as it came into the station, I noticed it was 4012 leading... I'm sure I had that and 4066 earlier in the day. Sure enough, as the second car came in, it was 4066. What a surprise. As I'd spent the journey earlier on in 4012, I chose to go for 4066. All of the seats were taken and a handful of people were standing, so I remained on my feet. Stops at Longbenton; South Gosforth; Ilford Road; West Jesmond and Jesmond took place before I decided to bail at Haymarket. I'm somewhat quite fond of this set now, never had the same pair of Metrocars in one day. About half of the passengers in 4066 jumped ship here as well. Rather than get caught up in the crowds heading up the escalators; I watched 4012 and 4066 depart before strolling towards the escalators and getting up to the ticket barriers. The Metro staff there seemed to have lost the plot with the number of people, with constant shouting and yelling coming from them. When I had passed through, I headed towards the bus station and looked for something Arriva-related to go for a ride on.

#306 – Newcastle, Haymarket Bus Station to Sandyford, Arriva Jesmond Depot – (13:53 --- 14:00) – Arriva North East 1585 – Wright Streetlite DF/Wright Streetlite Micro-Hybrid – ''Coastliner''
Rather surprisingly, the only bus present in the stands was an Arriva ''Coastliner'' branded Streetlite, operating the 306. I pondered as to where I could go on it; I knew the 306 route to Whitley Bay took about an hour, and there was better things I could be doing in that time. The prospect of that long on a Wright Streetlite was also off-putting. Then, having passed Arriva's Jesmond depot earlier on the 52 and 310, I decided I'd head to Jesmond on this Streetlite. 1585 was the fleet number; I sat towards the back. The seating was leather of some sort, I wasn't sat on it long enough to be able to give my thoughts on it, but it didn't seem so bad for such a short journey. When I could see the Nisa Local, I pressed the bell to alight and made my way towards the front of the bus. Thanking the driver, I then began walking along the road up towards Jesmond Depot. 

#310 – Sandyford, Arriva Jesmond Depot to Newcastle, Haymarket Bus Station – (14:12 --- 14:18) – Go North East 6115 – Volvo B9TL/Wright Gemini 2 – ''Cobalt Clipper''
ALX300 4519 was stood near the front of the depot, with an ALX400 and a Gemini opposite it. A 46-branded Solo was parked just behind 7493 at the front of the garage, while an ALX300 was being reversed onto the pits at the back of the depot. They seem to be rather unreliable. After getting my photos, I was prepared to head back towards the bus stop, but I remember driving through Jesmond once and seeing that a lot of buses were parked around the side (this was a Sunday). I decided it was worth a look; so walked up. Sure enough, I struck oil. Fire-damaged 4663 was parked up, looking forlorn, with a couple of windows put out and some fire-damaged seats visible. Some of the smoke damage was quite evident on the cream swoop of it's original Arriva livery. Several hazard cones were surrounding it along with a tape cordoning it off. Even though I never travelled on 4663 before, it was something of a sad sight. I know Sean and Dan both loved it as it offered the superior ride to 4660-4662 and 4664 on the 685 service it was allocated to. When I was done, I walked back down to Sandyford Road and crossed over for a bus back to Newcastle. A ''Cobalt Clipper'' B9TL was the first to appear so I flagged it to a halt. 6115 was the fleet number; I think I've travelled on this one before but I don't really keep track of the ''Cobalt Clippers'' as they don't effect me in any way. Not many people were on board, which came as a surprise, so I sat at the back downstairs. The ride was smooth, just a standard B9 journey.

#100 – Newcastle, Blackett Street to MetroCentre Transport Interchange – (14:30 --- 14:53) – Stagecoach North East 27507 – Dennis Enviro300/Alexander Enviro300 – ''100''
I decided I'd give the Arriva stuff a break for a while, and instead go for the only thing I needed to complete my aim for the day; a Stagecoach bus. The easiest thing I could think of was the 100 to the MetroCentre, I did some maths in my head and realised if I got a move on, I could catch the 14:58 96 from the MetroCentre to Gateshead, which would be a Wright Renown (hehehehehehehe). Having waited for a couple of minutes, I saw one of the distinctive ''MetroCentre 100'' branded Dennis Enviros coming along Blackett Street. The queue consisted of about fifteen people, I sat next to the emergency exit at the back. While the seat I was sat in was very comfy (I find that with most Stagecoach seats), the seats opposite looked almost like Urban 90s... Some nice kickdowns from this machine, especially when crossing the Tyne and going along Handy Drive. Quite like these buses, but for some reason I think they look a bit ugly externally. The ALX300s will always remain my favourite body on a Stagecoach bus, I just think they're so smart in the Stagecoach livery. Upon arrival at the MetroCentre; I noticed a Go North East Wright Renown and a Wright Solar were parked up in the layover bays, out of service.

#S1 – MetroCentre Transport Interchange to MetroCentre Transport Interchange – (14:56 --- 15:13) – Go North East 8266 – VDL SB120/Wright Merit – ''S1 MetroCentre''
Upon closer inspection; the Renown, 4901, had it's rear destination screen set for the 67 to Wardley. Damn. Within seconds of that realisation, the Solar, 4944, pulled out with the rear screen set for the 96 to Gateshead... Well that plan went out of the window! After looking around for anything good; I noticed the S1 was coming in, with it's allocated vehicle, 8266, operating it. I'd never used the S1 before, so decided to kill some time by seeing where exactly it went. The driver seemed initially confused by my Explorer but after a closer look he nodded and smiled, he appeared quite pleasant. A group of old ladies boarded outside of Gala bingo (surprised Sean wasn't amongst them, inside joke...), before we headed around to ASDA and IKEA. I'll confess, I had no idea we had either of them at the MetroCentre... Next up was Debenhams, which I am familiar with, before looping around Marks & Spencer, yet another familiar name and then turning back up towards the Interchange. Was an interesting way to spend fifteen minutes, similar to the Stanley circulars. Just to kill a bit of time. 8266 sounded a bit rough at first, it took the driver three attempts to get the engine turned on, but when it was running, it was a nice little machine. Only problem with the place I chose to sit was the lack of legroom, I'm nearly 6 foot tall so that is often a problem...

#45 – MetroCentre Transport Interchange to Newcastle, Eldon Square Bus Station – (15:20 --- 15:40) – Go North East 6133 – Scania N94UD/East Lancs OmniDekka – ''Metro Radio''
After waiting for about five minutes for something Newcastle-bound, ''TEN'' branded Volvo B9TL 6082 came in. Quite a lot of people were going for this, so I joined the end of the queue, but in the corner of my eye, I could see ''Metro Radio'' liveried 6133 coming up behind it. I'd not yet rode this OmniDekka, and I find it's a very attractive livery, so I was pretty pleased to have the chance to ride this. It's also internally refurbished, along with 6131, so I've now got both of those cleared. I boarded and quickly got an interior shot upstairs while it was empty. As other passengers boarded, an announcement came over stating that all buses in and around Newcastle would be running significantly late due to the football match traffic. I have to say, I don't think we really encountered any traffic in the city centre. The only traffic we were stuck in was on Handy Drive, and that is to be expected. A few people alighted at Clayton Street, but I stayed on until Eldon Square, which we rolled into at 15:40. I then decided I was going to call it a day and catch the 15:50 X12 service back to Chester-le-Street. Following a trip to Greggs for a Ham & Cheese Baguette, I returned to the bus station for 15:45.

#X12 – Newcastle, Eldon Square Bus Station to Chester-le-Street Black Horse – (15:52 --- 16:28) – Arriva North East 1476 – VDL SB200/Wright Pulsar – ''Arriva Corporate''
After spending a couple of minutes browsing the timetables for any that I didn't have the latest update of, I looked up to Percy Street and saw a corporate-liveried Pulsar. YES. I love how smart the Pulsars look in this livery; they're brilliant buses and they wear a fantastic coat. Driver seemed like a nice enough guy, and I sat a row from the back seats. We departed Eldon Square with about ten passengers on board; picking up three more at the High Level Bridge (who departed in Low Fell) and nobody at Gateshead Interchange. This machine was just brilliant to ride, I can't express my liking of the Pulsars very well but they're very speedy too. We left Eldon Square a few minutes late and when we reached Chester-le-Street Red Lion; we had to wait for a few minutes until our departure time. I jumped ship at the next advertised stop, at the Black Horse, before walking home from there. I was home for 16:50, having had a superb day out.

Was really happy with how the day went. It was certainly worth the £9.70 I paid for it; my next Explorer will likely see me venture south to Darlington, Stockton and Middlesbrough, an area I have little experience of so shall have to get clued up on.

R852 PRG