Go North East

[Andyh82]

The E400MMCs on the X84/X85 was surely because after the new fleet was ordered there had been some changes, namely the Interdecks being cascaded and the short lived pre-COVID increase in frequency on the X21 not being reinstated. The 4 buses were surplus and using them on there was as good a use as any (any other use would probably have ended up with a split allocation as most routes have a higher PVR)

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The E400MMCs on the X84/X85 was surely because after the new fleet was ordered there had been some changes, namely the Interdecks being cascaded and the short lived pre-COVID increase in frequency on the X21 not being reinstated. The 4 buses were surplus and using them on there was as good a use as any (any other use would probably have ended up with a split allocation as most routes have a higher PVR)

I don't know if it was as simple as that. There were 7 Interdecks IIRC and even if they were spare, the X84/X85 was never going to sustain the cost of new vehicles.

 

[Snex]

If you're advocating that Arriva North East is the way to run a business, we may have to disagree They are a lacklustre operation, especially South of the Tyne. They have vehicles in a terrible condition including vehicles from 2009 that have never been repainted (photo from Flickr - Michael A Parker). Stagecoach is better but feels that Go NE has experienced more change in its service allocations.

Arriva Ashington VDL SB200 Wright Pulsar 2 NK09 BPY 1409

Explore Micheal Aaron's 7345 photos on Flickr!

www.flickr.com

I agree on some of the criticisms of the Gilbert era. Too many indulgences that please the veg but don't pay many bills - Routemaster on the 21, random enthusiast liveries etc. There were some positive moves (like the X-lines network) but even that had its baffling moves with the Interdecks arriving and soon disappearing, and the idea that the X84/X85 could justify new e400mmcs. I do applaud firms that try to market their services effectively but I couldn't see the point of rebrands for the sake of it - it seemed very much like "not invented here" or "not invented by Ray". Felt unnecessary and that the glossy videos were spend that wasn't really required either.

The fleet probably does need some standardisation but guess they have a lot of schools work where many of the B7TLs and Omnidekkas and they did dual source Versas and Streetlites about 9/10 years ago oddly.

Not sure whether your local but GoNorthEast is by far the worst of the three operators up here. Arriva might not have the best fleet presentation but what it does have is a stable network which has barely changed similar to Stagecoach.

On the other hand GNE changes it network every other week and none of the changes are ever positive. You can have the nicest buses and presentation but if the route to your work doesn't exist anymore then it's worthless. Not to mention it's been suffering from driver shortages, resolution - cut services even further and there's still shortages all over the place. You just have to look at North Tyneside in particular which used to be a strong GNE area, now they barely exist with some string routes competing with the Arriva or Stagecoach network and other areas are no better.

X Lines was also an utter stupid thing to do imo. It replaced brands which were known especially the Red Kite and Red Arrows which were recognisable to locals to some generic and boring brand which had no changes to the buses in some cases for the X21 and had battered Merc's on the X20. The whole thing was just a mess from the start and hammered by service cuts again. It's all just a gimmick to cover the underlying issues which have been going on the best part of a decade and it's not a surprise the whole thing is falling apart there's only so far you can cut things.

I'd take a stable network any day over fancy buses and tables but have to wait 30 minutes because the bus I used to use doesn't exist anymore.

 

[gimmea50anyday]

The X21 is historically OK Travel's flagship 724 route from Bishop Auckland to Newcastle - avoiding Durham - and under GoNE has seen OKs Bishop Auckland and now Northern's Chester Le Street garages close with the X21 vehicles now based at Riverside. I wonder wether basing some of the 21/X21 vehicles at Washington would help with the A1 issues and early starting and late finishes- although to be fair in every late or early shift I have commuted on the A1 for its only been the northbound carriageway that has been closed not southbound so that shouldn't affect the start of service, however Riverside to West Auckland is a lot of dead (ECS) running to take up the service

Is the Crook outstation still available?

Having done a search for "Go North East 5489", it would appear that it is an Alexander-Dennis Enviro 200MMC. It would be helpful if forum members provided a bit more information and didn't assume that the casual reader would know what they were talking about.

Thats why I asked, thanks. Appreciate the info.

If you're advocating that Arriva North East is the way to run a business, we may have to disagree They are a lacklustre operation, especially South of the Tyne.

GoNE have generally held the "better operator" for many years to the layman because they operate newer buses that look smarter, reliable routes and lower fares than Arriva offered with older and scruffier rattly hand me down vehicles. The irony is its Arriva that tends to actually turn up!

 

[Andyh82]

Isn’t the fact that Arriva have a more stable network because they pared it all back to the bone years ago, so there is nothing left to cut

 

[gimmea50anyday]

That probably has a lot to do with it Although Durham County Council would have had a lot to do with it, no doubt also driven by central government (Tory) spending cuts which will have seen plenty of routes axed because no one used them but no one uses them because they have been axed!

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Not sure whether your local but GoNorthEast is by far the worst of the three operators up here. Arriva might not have the best fleet presentation but what it does have is a stable network which has barely changed similar to Stagecoach.

On the other hand GNE changes it network every other week and none of the changes are ever positive. You can have the nicest buses and presentation but if the route to your work doesn't exist anymore then it's worthless. Not to mention it's been suffering from driver shortages, resolution - cut services even further and there's still shortages all over the place. You just have to look at North Tyneside in particular which used to be a strong GNE area, now they barely exist with some string routes competing with the Arriva or Stagecoach network and other areas are no better.

X Lines was also an utter stupid thing to do imo. It replaced brands which were known especially the Red Kite and Red Arrows which were recognisable to locals to some generic and boring brand which had no changes to the buses in some cases for the X21 and had battered Merc's on the X20. The whole thing was just a mess from the start and hammered by service cuts again. It's all just a gimmick to cover the underlying issues which have been going on the best part of a decade and it's not a surprise the whole thing is falling apart there's only so far you can cut things.

I'd take a stable network any day over fancy buses and tables but have to wait 30 minutes because the bus I used to use doesn't exist anymore.

I'm an exile - brought up on the buses in the North East. I have lived away for several years but still get to visit and explore, and have friends who work for some NE operators but not Go North East (GNE), I hasten to add. I do appreciate that I only get a snapshot on my returns and that GNE have had problems for some time; then again, so have Arriva which has been compounded by the Jesmond closure.

I've said before that I quite liked X-Lines - in many ways, it was the restoration of the former Expresslink network that Northern ran in the late 80s and early 90s. That said, I have also criticised the rebrand of certain routes - the removal of the Fab 56 in place of some generic brand seemed pointless, whereas they must have been on the good stuff when they came up with the Sunderland berries branding. I agree that there's been too much marketing and not enough focus on the base product and service delivery

Stagecoach is undoubtedly the most stable business, and arguably positively conservative. The core routes in Newcastle are unchanged for years - the 12, 38, 39 and 40 were my usual routes and whilst the Atlanteans are no more, the services themselves are much the same. Not to say that the secondary routes to places like Jesmond or Montagu haven't changed. There is the potential criticism that they could have been better at innovation and marketing but they have commendably focussed on the boring business of just running the same old network (though new bus deliveries for the main services has been a bit sporadic). However, Arriva North East/Northumbria is a text book example of ever-decreasing circles. It had 14 depots - it now has 6. For the Northumbria element of the business, it had 610 drivers in 1997 - it had 416 in 2019/20 and that has reduced further in the meantime. Two depots north of the Tyne now is almost unbelievable, and the axing of the 685 is the latest route to go but it won't be the last. Go into Co Durham and it's even worse. Bishop Auckland had a large Arriva depot of c.60 vehicles and then added the former OK ops. Again, these have declined so markedly so that the network is skeletal - routes to Wilington or Toft Hill just given up. When Peterlee bus station opened, it had an Arriva travel office and drivers canteen - now they run a few services through the town.

That's all been lost to Go NE as Arriva has ceded that territory but you wonder whether Go NE will now look to retreat from those areas into which they spread. Certainly, I agree that the recasts since Covid have been counter productive. Martijn Gilbert is good at developing from a good base but the post Covid world needs other skills. Nigel Featham is an experienced bus man, been involved in sorting out the Manchester operation, knows the North East, and think he'll start putting things right. Wouldn't be surprised to see a chunk of schools work relinquished too.

Is the Crook outstation still available?

Closed for some time and don't know if they can fit in anything as Weardale has taken on stuff from Scarlet Band

GoNE have generally held the "better operator" for many years to the layman because they operate newer buses that look smarter, reliable routes and lower fares than Arriva offered with older and scruffier rattly hand me down vehicles. The irony is its Arriva that tends to actually turn up!

Don't know about that. Cancellations posted in recent days from Blyth depot were posted on Twitter, and they have had to post a public apology about service reliability

 

[Tetchytyke]

The constant changing of routes is the biggest issue, without a stable network people can't rely on the buses. The buses round the estates of North Tyneside seemed to change every other month even before I left in Feb 2020, and fares were high- a single from my house in Northumberland Park to Silverlink was the thick end of three quid.

Estate buses are never going to be lucrative, and North Tyneside isn't great bus territory once you get away from the Coast Road. But the constant fiddling, especially around Hadrian Park/Battle Hill, has just trashed the market. It's quite something that Stagecoach's extension of the 22 to Cobalt is the most stable service in recent years.

As for an individual OpCo making money or losing money, it's almost impossible to tell. Recharge of central corporate costs can massively affect headline profits, if you want your books to show a loss then management fees will achieve that nicely (as Arriva have shown for many years).

The books actually show a operating profit of £45,000 to year end 3 July 2021, after the Covid bus grant of £22.7M is taken into account. Although "materials and external charges" of £29.8M no doubt hides a multitude of sins.

 

[safcwebster]

Changes have appeared on VOSA for January but one looks to be some contract gains.

Reliability of the network is still awful and branding is now all but dead tokenism on some routes

More changes have appeared for Sunday 29th January 2023:

All variation, would expect more to appear soon:

PB0003954/1204
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 16 (16, 16A, 16B) Hownsgill Industrial Estate Durham

PB0003954/1209
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 47 (47) Consett Newcastle

PB0003954/1211
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 78 (78) Sunderland Consett

PB0003954/367
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X45 (X45) Newcastle Consett

PB0003954/365
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X15 (X15, X5) Durham Shotley Bridge Hospital

PB0003954/559
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 10 (10, 10A, 10B) Hexham Newcastle

PB0003954/649
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 12 (12) Winlaton Newcastle

PB0003954/1288
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED V5 (V5) The Dene Crookhall

PB0003954/1102
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X30 (X31, X30) Stanley Newcastle

PB0003954/364
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X71 (X71, X72) Stanley Newcastle

 

[Snex]

I'm an exile - brought up on the buses in the North East. I have lived away for several years but still get to visit and explore, and have friends who work for some NE operators but not Go North East (GNE), I hasten to add. I do appreciate that I only get a snapshot on my returns and that GNE have had problems for some time; then again, so have Arriva which has been compounded by the Jesmond closure.

I've said before that I quite liked X-Lines - in many ways, it was the restoration of the former Expresslink network that Northern ran in the late 80s and early 90s. That said, I have also criticised the rebrand of certain routes - the removal of the Fab 56 in place of some generic brand seemed pointless, whereas they must have been on the good stuff when they came up with the Sunderland berries branding. I agree that there's been too much marketing and not enough focus on the base product and service delivery

Stagecoach is undoubtedly the most stable business, and arguably positively conservative. The core routes in Newcastle are unchanged for years - the 12, 38, 39 and 40 were my usual routes and whilst the Atlanteans are no more, the services themselves are much the same. Not to say that the secondary routes to places like Jesmond or Montagu haven't changed. There is the potential criticism that they could have been better at innovation and marketing but they have commendably focussed on the boring business of just running the same old network (though new bus deliveries for the main services has been a bit sporadic). However, Arriva North East/Northumbria is a text book example of ever-decreasing circles. It had 14 depots - it now has 6. For the Northumbria element of the business, it had 610 drivers in 1997 - it had 416 in 2019/20 and that has reduced further in the meantime. Two depots north of the Tyne now is almost unbelievable, and the axing of the 685 is the latest route to go but it won't be the last. Go into Co Durham and it's even worse. Bishop Auckland had a large Arriva depot of c.60 vehicles and then added the former OK ops. Again, these have declined so markedly so that the network is skeletal - routes to Wilington or Toft Hill just given up. When Peterlee bus station opened, it had an Arriva travel office and drivers canteen - now they run a few services through the town.

That's all been lost to Go NE as Arriva has ceded that territory but you wonder whether Go NE will now look to retreat from those areas into which they spread. Certainly, I agree that the recasts since Covid have been counter productive. Martijn Gilbert is good at developing from a good base but the post Covid world needs other skills. Nigel Featham is an experienced bus man, been involved in sorting out the Manchester operation, knows the North East, and think he'll start putting things right. Wouldn't be surprised to see a chunk of schools work relinquished too.


Closed for some time and don't know if they can fit in anything as Weardale has taken on stuff from Scarlet Band

Don't know about that. Cancellations posted in recent days from Blyth depot were posted on Twitter, and they have had to post a public apology about service reliability

Sorry haven't been honestly can't disagree with any of that. It's all just the best of the worst up if I had to honest. Until 2019 or so I'd say GNE was probably the best but they've just gone off the rails lately.

The cuts just don't seem logical and it's more just taking chunks out of it and leaving obvious gaps like Washington to Birtley. At least Arriva actually redesigned the network that actually made sense.

Hopefully things will get better as buses are dire in the North East lately.

 

[P410CCU]

The E400MMCs on the X84/X85 was surely because after the new fleet was ordered there had been some changes, namely the Interdecks being cascaded and the short lived pre-COVID increase in frequency on the X21 not being reinstated. The 4 buses were surplus and using them on there was as good a use as any (any other use would probably have ended up with a split allocation as most routes have a higher PVR)

Initial plan pre-covid was:

31x StreetDeck (2018-19 financial year)
- 13x X31/X45/X46
- 9x X47/X70/X71
- 4x X5/X15
- 4x X21 (when increased to every 15 mins)
- 1x 6 Cylinder StreetDeck - trial vehicle

3x E400MMC (2018-19 financial year)
- 3x X30 (plus 1x ex GoEY E400MMCas part of PVR)

15x E400MMC (2019-20 financial year)
- 14x X1 (spare being either 6336 or 6337)
- 1x X30 to form full PVR without ex GoEY stock (spare being either 6336 or 6337)

Potential future investment if COVID didn't happen:
- Either OM936 StreetDecks or Scania N250 E400MMC for X9/X10
- 5x Volvo B5TL from above cascaded onto X84/X85

 

[GusB]

Quick reminder: when posting information from elsewhere on the web, please remember to include a link to the relevant page, ensuring that any copied content is placed within quote tags. Thanks

 

[safcwebster]

More changes have appeared for Sunday 29th January 2023:

All variation, would expect more to appear soon:

PB0003954/1204
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 16 (16, 16A, 16B) Hownsgill Industrial Estate Durham

PB0003954/1209
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 47 (47) Consett Newcastle

PB0003954/1211
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 78 (78) Sunderland Consett

PB0003954/367
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X45 (X45) Newcastle Consett

PB0003954/365
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X15 (X15, X5) Durham Shotley Bridge Hospital

PB0003954/559
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 10 (10, 10A, 10B) Hexham Newcastle

PB0003954/649
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED 12 (12) Winlaton Newcastle

PB0003954/1288
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED V5 (V5) The Dene Crookhall

PB0003954/1102
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X30 (X31, X30) Stanley Newcastle

PB0003954/364
Variation GO NORTH EAST LIMITED X71 (X71, X72) Stanley Newcastle

Service changes from Sunday 29 January​

Service changes from Sunday 29 January

New timetables will come into effect from Sunday 29 January to improve reliability of services in Consett and across Western Gateshead.

www.gonortheast.co.uk

-------------


Go North East also have the Mercedes eCitaro demonstrator back on loan for 2 weeks on the 97 (Newcastle to Metrocentre ASDA via Gateshead, Bensham, Lobley Hill, Whickham, Fellside Park, Swalwell and Metrocentre)

- https://www.flickr.com/photos/apt358/52611770343/in/feed-29724939-1673040429-1-72157721652379605 - photo by aptyldsley

 

[Soundwave]

Latest set of accounts for the year ending June 22 have been published and show a loss of over £4,000,000. Which is worse than the previous year.

Only now can we see in black and white what an absolute disaster the previous regime caused.

 

[northern506]

Seems like Go North East are starting a few new services to replace Arriva services 51, 52, 53, 54 and 55 which are planned to be withdrawn in September.

352 - Newcastle to Cramlington (VOSA registration https://www.vehicle-operator-licens...registered-local-bus-services/details/610736/)
353 - North Shields to Cramlington (VOSA registration https://www.vehicle-operator-licens...registered-local-bus-services/details/610737/)
354 - North Shields to Newcastle (VOSA registration https://www.vehicle-operator-licens...registered-local-bus-services/details/610729/)
355 - Newcastle to Forest Hall (VOSA registration https://www.vehicle-operator-licens...registered-local-bus-services/details/610730/)

 

[Bristol LHS]

Is the 51 secured by Nexus? Just wondering why it’s not included.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Is the 51 secured by Nexus? Just wondering why it’s not included.

Partially supported, between Whitley Bay and Holystone, and all Sunday/Evening journeys.

 

[rg177]

As expected, Go North East have formally announced that they'll be taking over these Arriva services from 3 September:

Earlier this year, Arriva announced plans to stop running some of the services that it operates in Newcastle and North Tyneside, from Sunday 3 September.

In response, we are stepping in to partially replace these services, joining our existing network of services in North Tyneside.

Nexus will also be funding some additional services, which we will operate, using financial support from the Government’s Bus Service Improvement Plan.

The new services that we will operate from Sunday 3 September are summarised below:

Service 335

• The new 335 service will operate hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes between Killingworth, West Moor, Quorum Park, BT Call Centre, Four Lane Ends, Benton ASDA, High Farm, Battle Hill and Hadrian Park.

Service 351

• This new service will be introduced to replace Arriva North East service 51.
• It will follow the same route as the current 51, but with some minor route changes in the Holystone Park area, where buses will serve the full length of Francis Way instead of Edmund Road.
• The evening journeys on service 51, which we currently operate, will be re-numbered 351.

Service 352

• This new service will be introduced to replace Arriva North East service 52.
• It will follow the same route as the current 52 but will serve Annitsford and Fern Drive in Dudley instead of Weetslade Road.
• The new 352 service will operate hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes and will provide a half-hourly service between Killingworth, Burradon, Annitsford, Dudley and Cramlington, with new service 353.

Service 353

• This new service will be introduced to replace Arriva North East service 53.
• It will follow the same route as the current 53, but with a slightly revised route in North Shields town centre to serve the new Transport Hub.
• The new 353 service will operate hourly during the day early until late, seven days per week.
• It will provide a half-hourly service Monday to Saturday daytimes between Shiremoor and North Shields, with new service 354.

Service 354

• This new service will be introduced to replace Arriva North East service 54.
• It will follow the same route as the current 54, except between South Gosforth and Quorum Park, where the 354 will serve Benton Park Road and Four Lane Ends instead of Longbenton Estate, and then east of New York, where the 354 will serve Billy Mill and North Shields instead of the General Hospital and Whitley Bay.
• Customers travelling to North Tyneside Hospital and Whitley Bay from Killingworth, Backworth, Shiremoor and Murton Village can instead use new service 359.
• The new 354 service will operate hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes and will provide a half-hourly service between Shiremoor and North Shields with new service 353.
• Nexus will continue to provide later evening and Sunday bus services, following the current route of service 54, and will be operated by Stagecoach.

Service 355

• This new service will be introduced to replace Arriva North East service 55.
• It will follow the same route as the current 55, except between South Gosforth and Benton, where the 355 will provide a more frequent and direct service from West Farm Avenue instead of serving Benton Park Road and Four Lane Ends Interchange.
• The new 355 service will operate half hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes.

Service 359

• The new 359 service will operate hourly Monday to Saturday daytimes between Killingworth, Backworth, Shiremoor, Murton Village, North Tyneside Hospital and Whitley Bay.

The 335 is a Nexus contract currently run by Gateshead Central Taxis all the way from Killingworth to North Shields via Hadrian Park and the world, but that's being chopped to Killingworth - Hadrian Park due to a fair bit of duplication with other routes after there. It's one of my local routes, so hopefully, it being branded (and better advertised) might push a few more to use it. It's had a weird assortment of operators since it came about circa 2010, having started off with Veolia (who didn't seem to know what a timetable was, or a working destination display), then Arriva, followed by Phoenix (they weren't great either) and now GCT, who aren't the best-renowned, but we've ended up with 20 reg Enviro 200 MMCs, at least.

All of these new routes seem to be branded North Tyne Rockets. How successful they'll be, only time will tell. I look forward to trying them out when they start up.

 

[kez19]

As expected, Go North East have formally announced that they'll be taking over these Arriva services from 3 September:



The 335 is a Nexus contract currently run by Gateshead Central Taxis all the way from Killingworth to North Shields via Hadrian Park and the world, but that's being chopped to Killingworth - Hadrian Park due to a fair bit of duplication with other routes after there. It's one of my local routes, so hopefully, it being branded (and better advertised) might push a few more to use it. It's had a weird assortment of operators since it came about circa 2010, having started off with Veolia (who didn't seem to know what a timetable was, or a working destination display), then Arriva, followed by Phoenix (they weren't great either) and now GCT, who aren't the best-renowned, but we've ended up with 20 reg Enviro 200 MMCs, at least.

All of these new routes seem to be branded North Tyne Rockets. How successful they'll be, only time will tell. I look forward to trying them out when they start up.

The advantage I noticed with GNE on some of these routes from Arriva is they expand into Killingworth/Forest Hall and the dayticket goes a bit further (saying this as an outsider).

 

[rg177]

The advantage I noticed with GNE on some of these routes from Arriva is they expand into Killingworth/Forest Hall and the dayticket goes a bit further (saying this as an outsider).

Indeed. The North Tyne day ticket becomes significantly better value.

 

[kez19]

Indeed. The North Tyne day ticket becomes significantly better value.

I presume the All Zones ticket will be valid on the route as well, I may hop on these services next month as I could use the Killingworth shopping centre as an interchange but I would have to make sure timings are right back to Haymarket or divert off a bit towards either North Shields/Whitley Bay (last time I was in Killingworth/Forest Hall was Stagecoach X63 (62/63))

 

[Snex]

The advantage I noticed with GNE on some of these routes from Arriva is they expand into Killingworth/Forest Hall and the dayticket goes a bit further (saying this as an outsider).

Less frequent though other than the 54 (354) which will be a big problem for some.

It'll be interesting to see how some of these do, especially the 352, considering Stagecoach's 37 (extension of the 38) is every 30 minutes doing the same route, and similarly their extension to Forest Hall covering part of the 55 when they're arguably the main operator in those areas.

37/38 Stagecoach timetable for those interested - https://www.nexus.org.uk/sites/default/files/037-038-038a-sin-030923_0.pdf, they haven't advertised it anywhere yet.

 

[kez19]

Less frequent though other than the 54 (354) which will be a big problem for some.

It'll be interesting to see how some of these do, especially the 352, considering Stagecoach's 37 (extension of the 38) is every 30 minutes doing the same route, and similarly their extension to Forest Hall covering part of the 55 when they're arguably the main operator in those areas.

37/38 Stagecoach timetable for those interested - https://www.nexus.org.uk/sites/default/files/037-038-038a-sin-030923_0.pdf, they haven't advertised it anywhere yet.

On my visits to Newcastle I did spot the 55 for Forest Hall (Arriva), curious here but what Arriva (Go North East) cover the Killingworth shopping centre? Last time I went out that way I was familiar with Stagecoach but if there is say 2 services I might by chance use Go North East?

I noticed in terms of Stagecoach that the X63/62/63 (correct me) went along the outskirts of Forest Hall than cut through it? (had to look on maps but the part I was on was Great Lime Road).

 

[Snex]

On my visits to Newcastle I did spot the 55 for Forest Hall (Arriva), curious here but what Arriva (Go North East) cover the Killingworth shopping centre? Last time I went out that way I was familiar with Stagecoach but if there is say 2 services I might by chance use Go North East?

I noticed in terms of Stagecoach that the X63/62/63 (correct me) went along the outskirts of Forest Hall than cut through it? (had to look on maps but the part I was on was Great Lime Road).

The 63 runs through Forest Hall, depending on where you are. It does the same route from Four Lane Ends as far as Meadway where the 55 (355) heads East around the Meadway loop and the 63 heads West towards Killingworth on Great Lime Road. The 63 runs every 15 minutes but goes quite a long winded route via Byker and Chillingham Road though.

The Arriva 52 (352), 53 (353), 54 (354) are the services which serve Killingworth though.

Quite a lot of people in the area use the Metro though at Benton or Palmersville and just walk as it's more reliable, there's traffic problems in the South Gosforth area which on a bad day can add 10 - 15 minutes plus the walk to Haymarket (if using the 55) and the 63 has serious reliability issues at the best of times.

 

[kez19]

The 63 runs through Forest Hall, depending on where you are. It does the same route from Four Lane Ends as far as Meadway where the 55 (355) heads East around the Meadway loop and the 63 heads West towards Killingworth on Great Lime Road. The 63 runs every 15 minutes but goes quite a long winded route via Byker and Chillingham Road though.

The Arriva 52 (352), 53 (353), 54 (354) are the services which serve Killingworth though.

Quite a lot of people in the area use the Metro though at Benton or Palmersville and just walk as it's more reliable, there's traffic problems in the South Gosforth area which on a bad day can add 10 - 15 minutes plus the walk to Haymarket (if using the 55) and the 63 has serious reliability issues at the best of times.

Agree on the 63 (I think it was that one I used), I think it’s the X63 which goes opposite direction on that loop you speak of?

I did once get off Great Lime Road to walk to the shopping centre, nice area but I didn’t realise on the other how much Arriva had services going there, just was default I knew Stagecoach had went out that way.

 

[Snex]

Agree on the 63 (I think it was that one I used), I think it’s the X63 which goes opposite direction on that loop you speak of?

I did once get off Great Lime Road to walk to the shopping centre, nice area but I didn’t realise on the other how much Arriva had services going there, just was default I knew Stagecoach had went out that way.

The X63 is non stop from West Moor through Newcastle, btw these maps should explain them better, mind the Arriva one is pretty outdated.

Arriva: https://cdn1-originals.webdamdb.com...IUEk~9AULA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAI2ASI2IOLRFF2RHA
Stagecoach: https://tiscon-maps-stagecoachbus.s...ps/North East/NE_NewcastleRouteMap2023JAN.pdf
New GNE Routes: https://images-gonortheast.passenge...work Map from 3 September 2023 rough-01_0.png

 

[kez19]

The X63 is non stop from West Moor through Newcastle, btw these maps should explain them better, mind the Arriva one is pretty outdated.

Arriva: https://cdn1-originals.webdamdb.com/13953_108230904?cache=1594121452&response-content-disposition=inline;filename%3Dne-newcastle-map-september-2019.pdf&response-content-type=application/pdf&Policy=eyJTdGF0ZW1lbnQiOlt7IlJlc291cmNlIjoiaHR0cCo6Ly9jZG4xLW9yaWdpbmFscy53ZWJkYW1kYi5jb20vMTM5NTNfMTA4MjMwOTA0P2NhY2hlPTE1OTQxMjE0NTImcmVzcG9uc2UtY29udGVudC1kaXNwb3NpdGlvbj1pbmxpbmU7ZmlsZW5hbWUlMjUzRG5lLW5ld2Nhc3RsZS1tYXAtc2VwdGVtYmVyLTIwMTkucGRmJnJlc3BvbnNlLWNvbnRlbnQtdHlwZT1hcHBsaWNhdGlvbi9wZGYiLCJDb25kaXRpb24iOnsiRGF0ZUxlc3NUaGFuIjp7IkFXUzpFcG9jaFRpbWUiOjIxNDc0MTQ0MDB9fX1dfQ__&Signature=LqTH0Z0rCsshVnr22cgNbGyRUoNHRNl7MBzmEge3TBeZP9H3ZJzKyu2j2fzpqohqyJ-fb~AacG7byIueL6STGeiTlWlvsW80W1LkCdphGVKJUSoJWIVV~cRjOSw9e2Ga~EkllgsH~gEC6Bqq6hJ46PvAIyL6K8MHjcVMPF6WmmdwqNoRm76DJraiYqKfnocLvksXCnGfE~K1e4-h5sn88h0yKcvDgbb2QX1H7hFx1HBpZI2jeoANj0es1GmkwsRHBwYCB~UoswFsJmejHph5NSc-DaAnPJaAXzL3wDANJ7bduI6rvGoMVnkx4CizLrWHA0LsYqjaBRcuIUEk~9AULA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAI2ASI2IOLRFF2RHA
Stagecoach: https://tiscon-maps-stagecoachbus.s3.amazonaws.com/RouteMaps/North East/NE_NewcastleRouteMap2023JAN.pdf
New GNE Routes: https://images-gonortheast.passenger-website.com/inline-images/North Tyneside Network Map from 3 September 2023 rough-01_0.png

Interesting though! Thank you

 

[Statto]

Go North East passengers left on bus as driver 'quits'

Bus company Go North East says it "can't condone the actions" of the driver and is investigating.

www.bbc.co.uk

A bus driver appeared to quit his job while at the wheel, leaving his passengers stuck inside the double-decker.
Travellers on the Angel 21 service between Durham and Newcastle said they were left to work out how to exit the abandoned vehicle on Wednesday night.
Bus company Go North East said it would investigate why its customers were left stranded near the Angel of the North.
"We clearly can't condone the actions of this driver," a spokesperson said.
The driver pulled up to a stop beside the Gateshead landmark, got off the bus and closed the doors behind him, according to passengers.
One said those left onboard "did not know what was going on" before realising the driver was not coming back.
The helpless passengers then had to work out how to get off the bus, pressing a combination of buttons, before flagging down another service.
Go North East, which describes itself as the biggest bus operator in the region, confirmed to the BBC the incident did take place.
It vowed to "ensure the issue is investigated and dealt with according to our internal procedures".
It added: "We can only apologise to any customers who were inconvenienced by this event".

 

[Surreyman]

Go North East passengers left on bus as driver 'quits'

Bus company Go North East says it "can't condone the actions" of the driver and is investigating.

www.bbc.co.uk

Another example of 'Quiet quitting'

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

Another example of 'Quiet quitting'

Surely this is the antithesis of quiet quitting? Quiet quitting is simply not doing more than you're supposed to e.g. no overtime.

This is walking off the job and, whilst the driver may have had their reasons, their actions are really inexcusable.