(04 May 2016, 6:10 am)Dan wrote Reasonably well - just a bit of a pain having to endure seven hours on a Streetlite. At least the plugs were working and didn't go off once, though! The new bus seemed to turn heads in Sunderland, Houghton-le-Spring and Durham. Quite a few enthusiasts managed to get a photo of the bus too, though I only recognised Big Lugs out of them all.
I've never actually used the N56 in service before, so it was interesting for me to be able to cover the route on a bus (albeit not in public service!) The Streetlites are limited to 50mph whereas the Versas currently allocated can get up to about 55. Was a tad boring pottering along the A1231 between Washington Galleries and Ferryboat Lane at 50mph when I'm now used to doing that at 70, on a daily basis. Can't imagine it would affect the timekeeping of the N56 that much though, as I doubt drivers are particularly pushed for time in the dead of night.
Think it'll be really helpful having Next Stop Announcements on the N56. I know I've always found them useful when travelling when it's dark. Perhaps the infamous "Please remain seated until the bus has stopped" audio announcement would have been beneficial for those using the service that have had a bit too much to drink!
Don't lie, we all know everyone goes at least 80MPH along those roads!
