RE: Go North East: Major Service Changes July 2022
(17 May 2022, 11:02 pm)Drifter60 wrote I’ve been taking time to review the full list before making detailed comments, but I think we all well expected lots of these cuts. What really sticks out is the fact it’s not a year since the “getting buses fit for the future”. A few points from me.
Service 65
A big uplift in September 2022, later evening and Sunday buses for the first time in about a decade but 8 months in they’re wanting to cut it back? As people have said above; it hasn’t yet had the summer period to monitor passenger loads, both ends of the route during summer could have boosted Sunday services. I also distinctly remember being told to expect a ‘marketing campaign’ for this service, but I’ve never seen any promotional material about it.
Don’t get me started on the idea of a ‘two hourly’ service!! Night buses maybe but not for daytimes.
Service 62
Essentially this was just the 202 that had ran for years previously but with an extension to Sunderland. The interworking with X6 meant departure times to/from Sunderland were useless, X6/62 pretty much within 10 minutes of each other, there was little point from the start.
Murton
62 up for the axe and the 61 losing an bus each hour leaves Murton with fewer bus links and fewer connections - no direct bus to Peterlee, South Hetton, Spectrum Business Park.
I can remember when the 61 was every 15 minutes - it’s another which seems to have went the way of the 35; constant tinkering which has put passengers off. In the last ten years the 61 has numerous brand names, different coloured buses and vehicles types:
* Green ‘Drifter’ Cadets
* Purple ‘SimpliCity’ Versas
* Silver ‘unbranded’ Citaros
* Red ‘Black Cats’ Streetlites/Solars
* Changed to the ‘The 9’ with Red/Blue Citaros
* Back to the 61, Now branded as ‘Blue’ but still without blue buses.
If we’re saying branding works, having multiple colours, names and vehicles surely can’t be helping?
South Hetton
They’ll go from five buses per hour as is now to two buses although in fairness the X1 has added extra bus just recently. But it’s also about lost connections,if these changes go ahead mixed with previous cuts direct links to Durham, Seaham, Dalton Park, Horden, Easington Colliery, Sunderland and Doxford International all lost.
The Sundays 65's haven't done badly at all, South Hetton is a place bus companies don't understand at all, it's the local links that are more important than the X1 frequency
