(19 Sep 2013, 8:57 pm)Andreos1 wrote Maybe the frequency is what wins the day?
Or, the route isn't quick enough?
There have been endless services along Newcastle Road under on guise or another and it obviously isn't the answer.
Has the x36 fared any better?
There have been suggestions of a service going up the A19 from Sunderland or fast into Washington.
Anything has got to be better than sticking with the tried, tested and failed method.
The flaw in the GNE approach seems obvious to me. Look at the X3 route from Sunderland city centre (on Metro line) to Monkwearmouth (on Metro line) to Newcastle Road (on Metro line) to the Boldons (on Metro line). Metro every 15 mins (on a good day), X3 twice an hour with no evening or Sunday service.
Sorry to repeat previous rambles, but an Express bus to Newcastle from Sunderland would likely be more successful if it addressed unmet need rather than duplicating routes. There are clear alternative corridors they could use out of Sunderland: Chester Road being the obvious example. The X95 was successful for years and the X2 likewise was a well used commuter & shopper link – but they wanted the Citaros for the X1 expansion, so severed the (direct) link. Even something along the lines of whichever X it was that years ago went from Ryhope – Silksworth – Herrington – Shiney – Washington – Newcastle would be more innovative than 'how else can we run a bus parallel to the Metro'.