(22 Sep 2017, 4:09 pm)Andreos1 wrote Are they saving more money by not operating it (and the service TO Newcastle) and closing the depot for the night, than they are making, running it and keeping the depot open for that half hour or so?
Well going by a Friday and Saturday night, they would just about cover the costs without facing a big loss not incluidng all the money the 308 makes during the busy peak periods and are very busy that could subsidise the later service too!
At the end of the day, it's completely wrong that a service that has run for many years is being withdrawn! You're not talking about a route with fluctuating loads, you're talking about a route that is well used all times of the day (can often run late as a result and doesn't use 10x buses instead of 9x) and is probably only second behind the Angel in terms of passenger numbers and profit across the whole of the North East (excluding Busways services). This alone is enough to warrant a later service PLUS how much have Arriva saved in fuel since the B5LH's have went MAX meaning they can be used on the Blyth 'X' routes during evenings and Sundays when the full PVR isn't required?