(22 Dec 2020, 1:31 pm)Andreos1 wrote Very little effort or 'bloating' at all.
As an example, the 25 could easily be diverted down Blackfell Way and along Birtley Lane towards Chester (obviously in reverse in the other direction) during the school peaks. This would not only allow kids to get a bus to and from school, it could also reduce the number of cars in the area.
I reckon it would need very little adding to the timetable versus its normal running time along Portmeads Road.
The stop opposite the Library/Cenotaph has the 28 stopping there, but not the 82.
Give passengers the option of using that stop and you're opening up new and easier opportunities to get to the QE. As it stands, passengers who use the 82 and change on to the 28 are forced to get off at one stop (bus stop 1 on the first image), walk across Station Lane, carry on for 50yds or so and wait for another (infrequent) bus at bus stop 2.
As it stands, it's not really worth the hassle in doing the journey that way.
The southbound journey is even worse. Getting off the 28 at bus stop 3 or the 21 at bus stop 4 and having to walk to bus stop 1 for an 82 back home.
Depending where you live in Birtley, you could board a 23 at bus stop 4, but potentially there is the need a different type of ticket or an extra cost.
It's little things like that which need improving.
Continuous improvement and tweaks, which could make things so much easier for passengers and (regardless of any tables and WiFi), make travelling by bus more attractive.
There are many further examples just in Birtley alone of public transport not quite hitting the mark.
The 25 and 81 run along Portobello Road, but don't enter Vigo or Barley Mow where the passengers actually live and walk to & from the bus stop.
The 82 enters Vigo in both directions, but does a weird loop with a canny distance between Birtley bound (B1 on the second image) and Washington bound buses. (W1 & W2). Depending where on Vigo you live and where the bus stop is, you could be driving out of the estate and well on your way somewhere before you get anywhere near the bus stop.
Just to add the 23 to the mix, it stops at B2.
I've no idea which stop Birtley bound passengers gamble on if they're on Windermere mind. Stand in the middle of the road perhaps and run as fast as you can up or down the hill when you see a bus approaching?
Edit: Forgot to add images.
See if I was going to mess around with Birtley I'd change the 25 differently and keep it roughly the same but serve Blackfell Way additionally. I'd change the bottom half of the route though and instead of heading towards Barley Mow, I'd go towards Rickleton and Harraton and do a loop around there before going to CLS via Picktree and then terminate it there. Then extend 2 of the short 21's to do the rest of the 25 bus route so they don't have sit on a magical bus tour around Birtley and Wrekenton - it gives you the ability to make the 25 a bit longer in places without punishing anyone.
At the same time I'd look at sending the 50 upto Barley Mow and along Vigo Lane before rejoining it's bus route instead of going express along the A1(M), the time can't be too much different and it gives the bottom end of Birtley new bus links to Durham, Nissan and South Shields and getting arid of the 50A as it's no longer needed between CLS and Washington (replaced by 25).
For the 82 I'd probably try and extend it to Gateshead hourly via the 28 bus route to replace the 925 so it eliminates the change you were mentioning anyway and gives a service every 30 minutes through Eighton Banks (there's no PVR change) - I know you'd have to change the loop a bit.