From what I have gathered, the points being made against 'Blue Arrow' seem to be because there is already a 'Green Arrow' brand.
I, personally, don't see anything wrong with it. A valid point that has been raised is that the 11 and 97 both operate between Metrocentre and Newcastle and to similar routes at that. I think it would make sense to maybe show that the services have a similarity and this can easily be done through the branding. Afterall, a similar thing was done with the Citylink brand was introduced to service 57 on a different colour. Nobody complained about that so I honestly don't see what is any different here (providing that is the brand, of course).
RE: Go North East: Latest News & Discussion - July 2016