L469 YVK wroteYou keep going on about too many buses along the Coast Road, there's one bus that stands out here that you keep missing and that's the 311. It's utterly pointless serves nothing new and just duplicates everything else but now your suggesting that's every 15 minutes and the long distance 309/310 get cut down to every 30 minutes. That's the bus that needs to go if anything; send the 310 around Hadrian Park and just be done with it.

If the 310 was sent through Hadrian Park with 309 & 310 on a 15 minute frequency, that would increase the PVR to 18x (1 more than the original 309 & 310 PVR of 17x. 311 is a fine route and far from a waste of time and in fact, a very innovative idea by GNE compared by previous attempts to sort the problem child out (Hadrian Park) without the need to de-tour the 310.

Also the X9 failed, the 44 failed why on earth you'd want the 51A going to Marden again when it's not purpose of the 306 through there is a mystery. Now that's a waste of a bus.

Purpose since the 44/X9/X6 failed was to try and find a steady replacement. The easiest option was to tag on the 306. An extended 51A would actually be a 'gem' for Arriva as it would likely be subsidised by Nexus if they agreed to replace parts of the 359 with that and the 54 duplicates most of the 359.

I would remove the 306 from Battle Hill though just not to disagree with everything but the 309 along Station Road is a similar problem, one every 20 minute service inbetween a 7.5 minute bus service which leaves a messy 5, 6, 9 service in Battle Hill. The 22X is another service which is pointless and that really does carry fresh air and the 10 minute 22 and 15 minute 1 which aren't all needed neither going into Cobalt.

I think the Sunday 309 could be better spaced out but the actual frequency does it's job quite well in terms of streamlining compared to having the 57 as the 'oddball'. I reckon for Cobalt, GNE will hold the fort until Stagecoach start reducing or withdrawing services from Cobalt. With the rumoured acquisition of Q12 to Quorum by BT/EE, it's likely that both Arriva & Stagecoach will shift focus there.

Surprised you don't mention the other side which is genuinely a problem though with 9 buses an hour between South Beach and Seaton Sluice and even 8 if you dropped the 308 down to every 20 minutes.
Primary purpose of the 308 & 309 is to provide links to North Tyneside so not a big problem and not that the operators would expect to make a fortune on that particular section of route. Arriva do have a good stronghold though in that part regarding Seaton Sluice and South Beach.

The problem is the 311 is just the new problem child. Dan has said, no-one cares about loyality and they get on the first bus and all the buses carry fresh air along the Coast Road. Having a bus that only serves the Coast Road is a problem least with the 306, 308, 309 and 310 you can get fares at the other end. Meadowell to North Shields; Whitley to Blyth etc and create some loyalty there.

The 57 / 58 has been a problem for awhile I won't deny that but now you've just renumbered it the 311 and it's still the same bus. People don't care if it's GNE or Arriva because it's cheaper to buy singles than day tickets. Hadrian Park tbf is a pain in the arse where it is for routing a bus through. I didn't say increase the 309 and 310 upto every 15 minutes fully tho.

For the short 51A I'd send it around the new housing estates in Backworth like the 359 does personally, might be able to pick up a few punters wanting to go to Newcastle. The 306 isn't really a replacement for the X9 though tbf it's more a replacement for the 310 if anything.

Let's see what happens though we might be both right and the 306, 308 and 311 end up being the 3 routes getting cuts.