(13 Jan 2020, 12:10 am)streetdeckfan wrote I mean, last year I went from Tindale Crescent to Cramlington using only GNE services. That took a fair bit of time!
In total I did 98 miles on GNE services, spending 8 hours sitting on a bus!
The strange thing is, I lived in a GNE area until a few years ago, and I absolutely hated them. Since moving down here and using Arriva, I realised that GNE were far superior and the things I hated about GNE weren't unique to them, and were far worse with Arriva.
When I moved out of my mother's house, I specifically looked for a house that was on a GNE route, just so I wouldn't have to use Arriva. That's how much I try to avoid using them!
GNE actually goes to Cramlington? I only know of the GNE 42 going there. 8 hours on a bus? Wow. I think 72 minutes is the longest I have spent continuously sitting on a bus. In a day, probably that day, a few hours.
You looked for a house on a GNE route, then decided you hated GNE, moved to Arriva territory and now use GNE because they are superior to Arriva? Seriously, are you mad? I would love to live in proper GNE territory, and would look to do so, as ridiculous as that is, living somewhere for a bus! But I love GNE enough to do it, and don't think I will ever not like GNE. Why don't you drive instead of using Arriva/using GNE and going the long way round? Completely agree with not buying a ticket for Arriva buses, I will never do that. Even on a Day Rover I wouldn't use Arriva!
(13 Jan 2020, 12:17 am)BusLoverMum wrote Well, I think it's quite silly to refuse to use 75% of the buses that serve your locality without very good reason eg existing season ticket for other operator.
I despise the E200s on the arriva 64 but by refusing to use them I would either severely limit the amount of groceries I could carry home from the arnison centre or restrict myself, paying 20% more for doing so, and having to walk further to catch one of the options, to the 14 or 50.
My locality is Stagecoach territory, so not using Arriva has no consequence for me other than being unable to go to places only served by them. GNE is my favourite operator, and I choose them over Stagecoach whenever possible, but I do travel with Stagecoach for convenience, and they are not always bad to be fair.
Very good reason is up to me, and I am lucky to have the choice of all three operators, although Stagecoach is the dominant operator. Admittedly, my reason is not very good to be fair, it comes from when I was a child, a long time ago now, when I was going with my dad for a day out in Tynemouth I think it was, true story: We boarded the required Arriva service at Haymarket Bus Station as I recall and it wouldn't start - fair enough, buses suffer breakdowns sometimes, but get this, after waiting a little while for a replacement bus, we boarded, only for that bus to fail to start too! As I recall, we did get there eventually, and the Arriva buses we used were old and cranky things, and ever since that day I said I would never use Arriva ever again! They have since been taken over by DB, and I have stuck to my word - first impressions are lasting impressions. Arriva lost my custom once and for all.