(13 Feb 2026, 10:02 pm)Nerd4321 wrote The 353 only interworks with the 307 on certain trips during the week and all day on Sundays & 354 has one in the evening and thats it

True, but still quite an expense to be running heavy duty double deck vehicles on secondary local routes.

Also, if GNE are reducing weekend frequencies and cutting / curtailing some 307 & 309 trips notwithstanding competition from Arriva, surely it would be sensible to look at the allocated vehicle type to further reduce running costs.

Whilst the 301 has competition from the 22 between Howdon and Newcastle - the western part of the route is strong, and no doubt loads towards the Coast are decent during the summer. Plus the hill climbs around Bensham, Lobley Hill and Whickham would more than justify the extra running cost of B9TLs over StreetDecks not forgetting the overall route distance end to end.