(14 Nov 2021, 2:25 pm)Dan wrote The 71 was secured between Houghton-le-Spring and Seaham and ran at the times specified in the contract, so the commercially operated section between Houghton-le-Spring and Chester-le-Street ran at the times it did because of the contracted times on the other section of the route.
This means that the 78 would need to be re-timed to fit around the 71, to maintain an even headway between Chester-le-Street and Great Lumley on these services. But to do that, the 8 would also need to be re-timed, then the 35 too. The challenge with this is that the 35 is secured on an evening so needs to run at the times it does so that it easily runs onto the secured evening service without impacting on customers.
As I said before, it’s not that simple and there’s a wider context to be considered. It’s not within anyone’s interests to have a poorly planned timetable with uneven headways on common sections of route.
Appreciate customers don’t care about any of this and they’d prefer an even headway on services, but given this is an enthusiasts’ forum, we can have a greater appreciation for the logistics and why things aren’t as simple as one might think at first.
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And the 14 years it wasn't secured (including the period when it was the 36)? What was the reasoning for the headway issue then?
I know it's a big if. Huge in fact.
If GNE took on the Houghton - Seaham side commercially on a full time basis, then they would be able to do all sorts with it. Including managing the commercial part of the route in a more effective manner. Maybe even making it a success!
Taking on a contracted route, integrating it with a struggling commercial service and then seeing that commercial service hamstrung to the point we've been told it's not viable... Well, it's not really the best decision that's ever been made.
It's interesting you mention that the 35 timetable needs to be maintained with its secured evening counterpart.
Why doesn't the Sunday 78 tie in with its weekday equivalent?