(27 Jul 2023, 11:52 am)Storx wrote Must say I'll be very surprised if the 352 and 355 see out beyond March 2024, the 352 in particular. There's very limited reason to use them unless you only travel Monday to Friday day times when Stagecoach are covering them with a more frequent service and an evening / Sunday service with cheaper fares to boot.
Even the 353, I wouldn't be surprised if it's a Killingworth to North Shields only service aswell for similar reasons on the Northern end of the route, with the 19 the same frequency and quicker for Cramlington to North Shields / Cobalt passengers.
I can only imagine the 352 was planned thinking that Stagecoach wouldn't extend to Cramlington. That they are extending to Cramlington, are offering a far greater level of service than GNE plan to, and have funding for the evening service probably means the 352 is DOA.
Similarly, it's surprising that Nexus are funding the evening section of the 38 to Forest Hall, though I imagine that's likely due to it being cheaper to do that than fund an entire service. Either way, to the general public the service with a way to get back in the evening will probably be more appealing.