(07 Apr 2026, 9:42 pm)Busadvocate wrote To move the conversation on, where are the "so many" places that are "cut off altogether" that you consider should have a bus service? 

In the part of the region I know pretty well, the only communities that literally have no regular services are a few very small rural hamlets, plus a few housing estates that are hard to serve well (but with v few exceptions, have a bus within a 10 minute walk). What both types have in common is the lifestyle of people living there generates a very low demand for buses (although obviously an element of chicken and egg - people reliant on bus services don't/can't live there). I'm not sure that doing a lot more in these sort of places is actually as important as other priorities. 
eg Andreos' better services to centres of employment? More circular services? Extra resources to make services more reliable? IMO, the latter is up there, as TfGM has done. Choices, choices...

I lived in the area for 8 years, so I know of the significant issues caused by the lack of service to Tursdale & Integra61, Old Quarrington, Sunderland Bridge, Hett and Fishburn in particular. Buses would always be a top 3 topic whenever Councillors held their surgeries in these areas.

Fishburn of course had the X12, but that was cut with the justification of 'saving time', on what is a ridiculous excuse for an express service. The same way as Arriva had it driving past stops in Coxhoe with empty capacity, whilst mini buses ran through full. Integra61, I was around when that was being developed, and there was a lot of work done with Arriva to try and get them to serve the development. It was a flat out refusal - the infrastructure was even built to serve, and formed part of the traffic plan. The other similar one in Durham was Aykley Heads. All the housing and employment that has been created there, yet not even a mini bus to serve.

In Washington, you have no service in the industrial estates of Crowther and Stephenson. You then have long-standing issues with Albany (in part), Donvale and Stone Cellar Road (minus the bottom stop). That's before you get on to the awful design and the way the villages are (not) connected up.

On distance to stops; Active Travel England state that it should not exceed 400m/5 minute walk to the nearest bus stop. I'd suggest a 10 minute walk may be unachievable to people with mobility issues, or elderly users wanting to travel to/from the shops.

I don't disagree regarding lifestyles, but if that is the only metric you use to plan bus services, you're never going to encourage active travel as the first option. People will grow up isolated from public transport, know they need to get a car, then likely move somewhere more populated and retain the car they already have. The best way to achieve a proper modal shift is to encourage it from an early age, rather than trying to force it when they've already rehearsed the song.