I would mix it up...
56 All stopping service as normal
N56 leave it as it is
X56 All stops Newcastle to Gateshead Interchange than Non stop to Concord then all stops from Concord to Sunderland (Driver can go any route dictated by management aka ticket machine)
x56 only runs 7am -9am and 4pm-7pm on a 3 month trial.
departs 2 minute after the 56 (slow bus) so it follows in Newcastle city Centre basically and gives the driver option to tell people get the bus behind it is quicker and by doing this you speed both services up in theory in terms of unloading
(16 Oct 2025, 7:50 pm)Adrian wrote This absolutely needs to be part of the solution, and it's really down to short-sightedness that it's not.
If you take routes like the X1/56 for example, they're absolutely heaving going towards Newcastle on a morning, and most of the traffic is going to Gateshead or Newcastle colleges. Surely a better solution for this, and other examples, is to actually run dedicated college services. We know the model works, as we do it already with schools.
Yeah, most (if not all) will be on flexi. The HMRC staff, which I understand will form the bulk of the staff in there, have operational hours of between 7am-8pm under normal circumstances. Some other departments have different hours, but DWP (who will be one of the Pilgrim Place tenants) are broadly similar.
I think both are required, and what's a better solution really depends where you're driving from.
I'd hope that part of the Wearside Loop construction, immediate focus is placed on getting the Follingsby Park and Ride open on that short spur.
Running a dedicated college bus on a service route becomes a problem when college isnt there.
Same as school buses how many normal passengers board...
if there is a dedicated public service bus everyone can benefit from the cost of £45ph it runs a bus service per bus (ish). creating College only buses means services tax payers have to fund I prefer to see services become popular enough for commercial buses to operate even with a part subsidiary at least the operator has tried that is the key!
creating bus services that are self sufficient or if may need a 25% or 50% or even 40% subsidiary but the evidence is there and it is to be reviewed
we need Nexus secured services model to change basically