I was overhauling and mixing routes for fun and started to think partnership wise what would be best. So I started thinking about the madness that is North Tyneside having Stagecoach, Arriva, GNE, GCT and the Metro - quite a lot for a 'small' population. 

For partnership to work in my opinion then combined routing and ticketing are key. Below is my example of a partnership concept on key groups of routes which would have combined ticketing and timings....

Coast Road (Arriva & GNE)
306 Newcastle - North Shields = Current 306 Route & Frequency 
307 Newcastle - North Shields = Current 310 Route & Frequency (Hadrian Park now served by 23/24), renumbered for consistency with 306/7/....
308 Newcastle - Whitley Bay/Blyth = Current 308 Route & Frequency
309 Newcastle - Whitley Bay/Blyth = Current 309 Route & Frequency 
310 Newcastle - Whitley Bay = Current 51/51A Route & Frequency, renumbered (short runs extend to Northumberland Park instead of Holystone)

Cramlington - North Shields (Arriva & GNE)
17 Whitley Bay - Ashington = Current 57 Route & Frequency
18 North Shields - Cramlington/Ashington = Current 57A Route & Frequency
19 North Shields Ferry - Cramlington/Ashington = Current 19 Route & Frequency

Wallsend (Stagecoach & GNE)

20 Wallsend - Whitley Bay = Current 317 Route & Frequency
21 Gateshead - Whitley Bay = Current 1 Route & Frequency
22 Throckley - Northumberland Park = Current 22 Route & Frequency, extended to Northumberland Park
23 Throckley - Hadrian Park = Current 22 Route & Frequency, doesn't serve the business parks on Scotswood Rd and diverts at Willington to Hadrian Park
24/24A Wallsend - Hadrian Park = Current 41/41A Route & Frequency
61 Benton/Four Lane Ends = = Current 18 Route & Frequency, renumbered to line up with 62 & 1 and extended to Wallsend via lost link (Q3 route)

I welcome feedback and please add your own areas/changes if you wish...

The X11 is officially returning for 2022...registered on VOSA starting 28th May

Plaxton Centro 1923 has now entered service at Ashington, was put on 35s thos afternoon is tracking as SP-NE as pulsar 1462 is also tracking as.

Back in the 1990s and the first half of the 2000s, what timetable leaflets were produced in the area?

Was it the responsibility of the operators, or did Nexus used to provide leaflets for more than just secured services (as was the norm in West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Greater Manchester etc)?

And regardless of whether it was the operators or the PTE who did timetables, were they seperate ones for individual services like recently, or was there area guides/booklets etc?

I saw in the SC recent repaints thread preservation be mentioned which got me wondering,do SC have any preserved buses in the north east,or is there maybe a bus you would like to see preserved?

Been wondering,what engines do most of the 24*** buses  have?

The 20 has had it branding changed to Upto every 15 mins. 

So 4 more 16' plates are chanced to be painted, or maybe just 2 to have 2 branded spares.

Personally I would have Sunderland-Durham every 10 (6ph), with it extending to South Sheilds (3ph) every 20 mins.

To celebrate the joint 50 year anniversaries of the Leyland National and the Lillyhall factory we are organising a unique FREE EVENT, LN50, to take place in Whitehaven on the Bank Holiday weekend of 30th April to 1st May, 2022. We anticipate a large selection of vehicles to be either on display along the historic harbour side or running free services round the town and further afield. This will include one of the largest gatherings of Leyland Nationals since the factory closed, comprising vehicles from the earliest to the latest, with a few one-off surprises, and our own collection. There will be other Leyland types too, from Atlanteans to Olympians, a selection of historic, preserved Cumberland vehicles and an emphasis of buses from the major groupings at the time of the Leyland National’s heyday - in particular from the National Bus Company and the PTEs that ran services in the our major conurbations.

https://www.facebook.com/events/whitehav...303199712/

Just drove past the bus link mentioned in the thread title and it looks complete now. Traffic lights are now active for it, still coned off for buses. But hopefully sees use soon after taking how my years to build it.

Go-Ahead Group sets out a new business strategy, “The Next Billion Journeys”: https://newsroom.go-ahead.com/news/the-g...n-journeys

There's more detail in the web link above, but:

The Next Billion Journeys

Our strategy, The Next Billion Journeys, will focus on three strategic objectives:

• Improve the performance of the underlying business
  
• Grow organically and externally
  
• Progress new opportunities
  

To achieve, these objectives, Go-Ahead’s management team will prioritise five enablers:

1. Strengthening governance and transparency
   
2. Improving digital and data capabilities
   
3. Consolidating Zero Emission capabilities
   
4. Rebuilding post-Covid confidence with passengers and clients
   
5. Enhancing people engagement and collaboration
   

One of the points I noted: "Emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic, Go-Ahead will implement initiatives to accelerate passenger recovery – including leveraging data to analyse new travel patterns and to tailor routes, schedules and ticketing to match passenger needs, plus marketing initiatives to rebuild confidence in public transport."

Now that could be read as something that is much needed, and really needs to happen to improve transport early morning and evening for commuters, but on the other hand it could be further eradication of anything that doesn't make a profit, similar to what has happened recently in North Tyneside. It'll be interesting to see how this one plays out, and exactly how it fits into the new world of 'partnership'