Received an e-mail from Mick, the head admin secretary for Pygalls Coaches and the daily driver for the 230 service, about half an hour ago:

First on the agenda was the 17:15 departure from Park Lane on an evening [as listed in several online timetables released to the public]... Mick assures me that this time is incorrect. The timetable that Pygall's Coaches received from Durham County Council states that the final departure from Park Lane is in fact 17:08, and is due at Seaham New Mill Inn at 17:15.
Thus meaning that the timetables we've all being going by [see below] are incorrect for the last duty at least:
http://www.nexus.org.uk/sites/nexus.org....1212_1.pdf
http://durham.pindarcreative.co.uk/tt/230.pdf

Certainly not the first time Nexus have mucked up! The timetables that they have managed to update at bus stops along the route are all incorrect too, it seems. For example, a stop on Ryhope Road states that the bus is due at 17:18 there, see below:
http://liners.nexus.org.uk/25298.pdf


In a hopeless attempt, I also asked about F114TML and its possible usage on the 230 service, to which I got the reply of 'F114TML is a service bus that was bought for the sole purpose of school contracts and big lift type jobs so would only ever be used in service as a matter of urgency'. Disappointing, I know... But at least Peter got a picture of it while working a one-off trip for my school:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/27204054@N0...hotostream


I also asked about W424WRE (W1 CTS) - why it is not used on the 230 service anymore and why it has been replaced with a much older vehicle (N755 OYR). Mick said that it is currently being prepped for a trade for a newer style low floor double decker, so chances are that N755 OYR will be used until that transaction takes place. It seems that we had it for a week in service and it departed soon after! I have e-mailed him back in query of this new 'low floor double decker', and whether that will definitely be used on the 230 service or not. Hopefully I should receive an e-mail back tomorrow [or rather, today] regarding that question, now that I'm contacting the company directly by e-mail rather than a standard contact form.


I know a few of us have been wondering about the fares - child and adult alike - so I posed a question regarding fares too. I asked if they could match or beat Go North East's competitive price for an all-day ticket costing £3.50 for those who are Under 18 and Mick said that if I was to travel on his service, I would be charged half the adult fare. When I saw the East Lancs Dart in Newcastle the other day, I noticed a few posters inside of the vehicle advertising an adult return for £5.00. With a little bit of maths, I've worked out that a child return must be £2.50!


What would I do without the power of e-mails, eh?