Saturday 16th January 2016

My review of yesterday's outing:

09:07 X12 7610 Chester-le-Street Corals to Newcastle Eldon Square
I arrived on the Front Street at around 08:30, and decided to devote half an hour or so to taking photos, as I hadn't yet spent a lot of time in Chester-le-Street taking photos with my DSLR. During this time; I managed to get a decent photo of the Streetdeck, which was an aim I could tick off, as it had always avoided me, or any photo I'd tried to take beforehand would come out terrible. One of the long serving drivers was at the wheel of 5255, working the 08:51 to South Shields, and we conversed for a few minutes before he departed. Was happy to have the Streetdeck cleared for a photo, and when I saw a ''MAX'' Gemini making it's way down the Front Street, I decided to catch this through to Newcastle, and start my bashing from there. Luckily for me, it was 7610, which was required for haulage, having photographed but not rode on it since it's arrival at Belmont many months ago. Made my way upstairs and sat on the offside, a few rows behind the stairs. Loading was quite light, which isn't usually the case with the Pulsar-operated service I tend to catch an hour or half an hour before the 09:07, so that also made a pleasant change. 

09:52 X78 22073 Newcastle Eldon Square to Newcastle Airport
Upon arrival in Eldon Square, I had a little look around, before deciding to catch the next X78 up to the Airport. I was already of the understanding that this service would utilise one of Slatyford's ALX300s. One of the things I like so much about the ALX300s, stems from when I was little; whenever I got the bus (sometimes a Lolyne, Plaxton President, or a Spectra) through to Newcastle with my mother, I would see single deckers that looked quite happy. The eyes and the front panel formed a smile to my young mind, and it's something that I still see today. When it came in, I identified the bus as 22073. Made my way towards the rear, and sat on the offside, one row from the back. The seats in front of me had been graffitied, I'd be willing to bet the fine artwork of a charver. Loved the roar of the MAN engine as we powered along the route, and within twenty minutes, I could see the Airport coming up on the starboard side, so prepared to alight.

10:22 Metro 4041+4011 Airport to Kingston Park
After thanking the young female driver of 22073, I began to walk towards the Airport. I could see the Metro station, but couldn't quite work out where I could get into it from. Had to walk into the terminal building (remember, this was in fact my first visit to Newcastle Airport for the Metro, so was completely unaware of where to go), but quickly saw a Metro sign to my right, and followed it down into the Metro station. On the right platform; an empty set of Metrocars were sat awaiting their time to depart, 4041 was on the rear, with 4011 leading. I'd never sat at the front of a Metro before this, and so I quickly took the opportunity to do so while I had the chance. 4011 was completely empty for this journey, and it was only a few stops until Kingston Park, where I opted to alight in favour of another ALX300 back to Newcastle, on the X47.

10:45 X47 22411 Kingston Park Shopping Centre to Newcastle New Bridge Street
Having alighted the Metro and made my way across the road at the level crossing, I waited for about ten minutes in the freezing cold, for an X47 to come. I determined I must have just missed one as my Metro had came in, unless the service, on a ten minute frequency, often falls victim to traffic congestion, consequently sending the timetable out of the window. When the next one did appear, it was in the hands of 22411; one of the younger ALX300s in the Slatyford fleet. I hadn't been on the X47 in many months, in fact only one before. I can recall that on that journey, I rang my mother to ask her to select my chosen horse for the Grand National. It's a nice fast run, and the loading on this journey was pretty light, with about half a dozen other passengers on board in total. Once again, the roar of the MAN engine in this machine provided another musical journey.

11:25 X25 3875 Newcastle Eldon Square to Chester-le-Street Red Lion
When we arrived back in the city centre, I jumped off on New Bridge Street, and began to walk back to Eldon Square Bus Station; now intent on heading south, for some of Belmont's Lowlanders. Dan gave me a tip-off that Lolyne 3875 was operating the 11:25 out of Eldon Square, and so I decided to wait to catch that back to Chester-le-Street, then board something else further to Durham. Watched with excitement as 3875 came into the bus station, and I boarded to find enthusiast John Westmoorland was at the wheel. He greeted me as I showed him my Explorer, and I then made my way up the stairwell. I understand Lolynes have a hard time with enthusiasts. For me, it will be a sad day when the last one gets the bullet; as there has always been an allocation of them at Chester-le-Street depot throughout my life. Even when I've not been interested in buses, such as when I was at primary school, they have been present, roaming the Front Street in their numbers. As a result, I think it will be strange when I no longer see them out and about. Hopefully more B7TLs don't replace them... The journey back to Chester-le-Street was most enjoyable, with the snow across the hills of Eighton Banks providing a stunning backdrop as we glided through the hilly sections of the route. When we got to Chester-le-Street, I thanked John, and jumped ship.

12:12 X21 9119 Chester-le-Street Red Lion to Durham Bus Station
I looked around, and noticed that Gary Wheatley was Point Supervisor, so decided to go over and talk to him for a while. I rarely have the chance to talk to any of Chester-le-Street's staff these days, as I don't spend a lot of time there anymore, having started to enjoy my outings elsewhere. Only a select few recognise me when they see me; Gary being one of them. He asked me how I was getting on, and I observed him changeover 6022 with 5202 on the 12:10 X25 to Newcastle. I could see that 9119 was coming in with the late-running 12:05 X21 service to Bishop Auckland, so thanked Gary for his time before I made my way across to have another spin on the Streetdeck, having done so only last Saturday. Again, the interior was immaculate, and the somewhat reassuring sound of the Daimler engine provided a nice background noise. This may come as a shock to some, but I found the Streetdeck performed absolutely fine on the A167 between Chester-le-Street and Pity Me, with no real issues at all. I'd like to think Go North East might purchase 9119 to serve as a spare for the X21, but we'll have to wait and see...

13:09 46 7454 Durham Bus Station to Crook Market Place
Waited around for one of the Y-reg Lowlanders that were new to Belmont, part of the batch of 7436-7444 (minus 7441 and 7443, which have since been withdrawn). I watched the comings and goings in the bus station for around half an hour, noticing that the 46 service to Crook appeared to be a primary duty that the Lowlanders were sworn to. While an original Lowlander would have been preferable, I saw 7454 was operating the 13:10 to Crook, so I decided to board that. Turns out I made a good move, as, while I've heard 7456 is the best of the lot, 7454 flew along some of the long stretches of the route. I sat at the back, on the nearside, and enjoyed listening to the roaring VDL engine, and the soothing whistle of the retarder whenever we slowed down. I think that, when I do have a day devoted to bashing the Lowlanders, I'll consider the 46.

14:04 46 7477 Crook Market Place to Durham Bus Station
My first impression of Crook was not a pleasant one, as I saw a group of five charvers hanging around the bus station. Rather than just catch 7454 back to Durham, I decided to brave it and head into the local Co-Operative for some lunch, before then catching the next service back to Durham. With that done, I headed back over to the Market Place bus stops, and awaited the 14:05 service. While I had hoped for another Lowlander, be it Y-reg or 57-plate, I was somewhat disappointed when I saw Belmont's sole ALX400, 7477, appear. Nevertheless, I braved it, as I couldn't stand being in this bombsite any longer, and it was cold. Sounded rough, but it performed well. I gather there was some diversion on at Brandon, as the driver was advising passengers on this. Had never done the route before, so could not tell the difference.

15:09 X24 7609 Durham Bus Station to Chester-le-Street Black Horse
After arriving back into Durham Bus Station at 14:45, I spent a short while getting photos, and determined that the X24 was going to be 7609, as I could see it was the only decker in the layover bays. For many of my outings previously, I've decided to catch the 15:10 X24 back to Chester-le-Street, as there is always a chance of it throwing up something good, and it's usually pretty much deserted. While a Lowlander would have been a nice treat, I was left with 7609. The last time I used this service, it was in the hands of 7620, another ''MAX'' Gemini. Performed relatively well, although I can remember a time, before the days of the X24 being in the hands of Lowlanders and ALX400s, where some of Waddington Street's finest were allocated, in the form of Olympians. One of which was red in colour, and a Scania of some variant. Never really used it myself, but I can recall my first ride on an Arriva bus, on my own, was in the hands of said vehicle. Back in present day, I alighted 7609 at the Black Horse, and walked home from there, arriving just before 16:00.

Was an enjoyable outing overall, and I managed to get some good photos, as well as a few new haulages. Thanks for reading.

R852 PRG