(16 Oct 2025, 9:46 pm)PH - BQA wrote The fact is though that these workers are literally being forced into converting to bus users, and the improvements which will be required to accommodate them all are the same improvements which will persuade other car users onto the bus. There isn't a choice for most of these people, they cannot continue driving to work, and if buses are to cope with the demand this will cause then changes will be required in some shape or form. 

There are a significant number of routes in the NE which go directly into Newcastle, pretty much using the route you'd take in a car, with only an initial 5-10 minute walk to a stop. The GNR, Durham Road, and Coast Road corridors (and the extensions north/south from some of these) are core examples. These corridors all serve large populations of people, and realistically much more could be done to improve their services. Be that additional express services (maybe a Coast Road express...), additional measures to improve timekeeping, or additional capacity.

I'd also be surprised if this is the last big jump in increased patronage into/out of the city centre. The housing and/or industrial projects at The Helix, Forth Banks, and the CAV/General will all have more people living or working within the city centre within the next few years - and most of those people will need transport.

Aye no arguments there, but I'm unsure whether these corridors will be impacted too much. You have to remember at the ministry currently you can't get a parking pass, unless you've worked there for donkey years, if you live nearby, and I'd imagine those people will be in the catchment area. The Metros out of Longbenton are squash load from the ministry at the peaks, already, so there's already a lot of people currently using public transport - where they're going who knows but I'd assume some are interchanging at Gateshead and Newcastle. I know around here is, and it's further away than these - roughly 6 miles I'd say. 

It's the long distance people who are the real problem; especially those from the Peterlee area who transferred across from the closure of the office there. I really don't know what the answer is there as 1 BPH on the X10 isn't cutting it and there's not a realistic interchange point either bar via Sunderland which is a bit of a detour. The long distance people who have magical mystery tours or lack of services, at all, and pissing around interchanging in Peterlee bus station is that aswell.

Waterview Park eventually being the other issue area since there's zero bus services to Newcastle from that area either but believe that's got a few years left now.

South East from Newcastle, is a big problem though, and it's the area with by far the worst bus service aswell as if you don't have the X1, then good luck pretty much.

(Of course don't disagree with improvements in general though).