(08 Feb 2017, 6:32 pm)peter wrote I suppose it is arguable that any service which did not have an "X" as part of the service number prior to going MAX saw the brand being stretched to incorporate it...Yet the 75/6 and 46 are really the only two examples of this to date. In theory Arriva should have stuck to the services they had already deemed worthy of the "X" as part of the route number to signify an "express" route (though I still use the word express loosely even so!)

Regardless, I do see the X46 as the threshold between using the brand appropriately as an identification of an express/interurban route and exploiting it for profitability (and thus branding routes for the sake of it!)

I'm sure everyone realises renumbering to the X46 is purely to make the route sound more attractive to passengers. The 'X' is as much a part of the brand as the 'MAX' logo or livery. Arriva aren't the first corporation to do so and won't be the last. Is there any difference between Lidl baked beans and Waitrose baked beans? Probably not, but many people will presume Waitrose is better because of the brand they have built.

The X46 still pretty much follows the route a car driver would take between Crook and Durham, so is still 'direct' as such. The 306/308 MAXing is a bit close to deviating from the brand concept technically, but clearly it's been decided MAX will stand up better against Cobalt Clipper than Frequenta. Once again, it's about what MAX suggests to the passenger, more than what the reality of the product is. Joe Bloggs stood in Haymarket wanting to get to the coast is going to subconsciously conclude that the X38 is faster than the 309. If Arriva win the passenger, they win the battle - however much we pick apart their efforts.