(07 Mar 2021, 1:47 pm)Andreos1 wrote By the looks of it, this X11 is nothing more than a day out for the driver.
A shame, as I do believe it could have not only complemented the X9/10, but also encouraged ANE to do something about the X93.
I genuinely hoped there would be a joint depot operation, with early morning, mid-day and evening runs extending the full way and the rest operating as the X9/10 does now.
Not only would it have been creative and different for day-trippers and holidaymakers, it may have attracted passengers travelling between key points.
I feel it is very half-hearted and almost like SNE's attempt a few years ago between Stockton/Greatham and Newcastle.
The flipside of that is that, to realistically compete with the X93 you'd need to look at an hourly frequency, especially if we bear in mind that over the summer they pump up the Whitby-Scarborough leg to every 20 minutes. That would be a PVR of approximately 7, assuming a journey time of around 3 hours and layover at both ends and some time at M'Boro to soak up any delays.
A PVR of 7 vehicles (and they'd need to be decent vehicles at that) on a brand new service which would compete with an established and good quality service for half it's route just isn't justifiable in the current climate. (I understand there are folks who think the X93 could be better, and I agree it could, but for the seasonal route it is I think ANE on the whole do a pretty good job with it and the B9s are of a reasonably good spec).