Northumberland
Public Transport Strategy
2011 - 2016
Consultation Draft
Northumberland County Council
December 2011
1
CONTENTS
Executive Summary
Introduction
1.
Strategic Overview
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
1.6
1.7
2.
Local Bus Services
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6
3.
Revenue Implications
Capital Implications
Developing the Strategy - Rail
5.1
5.2
5.3
5.4
5.5
5.6
5.7
6.
Service Delivery
User Confidence
Infrastructure and Schemes
Information Strategy
Funding the Strategy - Buses
4.1
4.2
5.
Network
Bus partnerships
Consultation
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats
Passenger Requirements
Government Guidance
Delivering the Strategy – Buses
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
4.
Context
Northumberland’s characteristics
Passenger Trends
Legislative Framework
National Policies
Local Policies
Vision, Aims & Objectives
Northumberland Rail Network
Passenger Rail Franchises
Existing levels of services
Partnerships
Consultation and Involvement
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats
Passenger Requirements
Delivering the Strategy – Rail
6.1
6.2
6.3
Service delivery
User confidence
Infrastructure
2
7.
Funding the Strategy
7.1
7.2
8.
Revenue Implications
Capital Implications
Conclusion
Appendix
A
Principal Northumberland Bus Routes
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A Public Transport Strategy for Northumberland
Executive Summary
The Northumberland Public Transport Strategy sets out how the County Council will
ensure the provision of appropriate bus and rail services for both passenger and freight in
the area. The strategy supports the proposals outlined in the 2011 Local Transport Plan.
It informs stakeholders how both bus and rail services are provided, clarifies the different
approaches required to each mode, what to expect from the Council and how the Council
expects to work with transport operators and communities. It aims to deliver the wider
objectives of the Government, the North East Region and the County Council.
The Strategy is about what the County Council believes passengers should expect when
using public transport in Northumberland including:
For buses:
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A clear walking route to the bus stop for all users
A clear bus stop with information about services and/or how to obtain
information
A clean, comfortable and well presented bus that is accessible to all sections of
the community
A friendly, knowledgeable and helpful driver
A reliable, service that runs on time to the published destinations
Routes that run where people want to go, with an acceptable journey time
An affordable fare structure that encourages use of the bus for a range of
journeys
A level of safety that makes public transport attractive to use
Good interchange with other modes of transport
For rail:
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A well signed station facility with good pedestrian access for all users and car
parking for those that require it
A series of basic station facilities to create a good passenger environment – a
shelter, a timetable, a litter bin, a telephone, etc
Information via public address or real time information boards regarding the
arrival and departure times of trains
A reliable service that meets the transport needs of people travelling within the
County, as well as longer distance travel through the County
Clean, comfortable and well presented trains that are accessible by all sections
of the community
Friendly, knowledgeable and helpful staff
An affordable fare structure that encourages use of trains for a range of journeys
A level of safety that makes public transport attractive to use
Good interchange with other modes of transport
It sets out how these expectations can be achieved and by whom.
The Strategy also invites all stakeholders to contribute their comments for incorporation
whenever it is renewed.
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Introduction
This is the first Northumberland Public Transport Strategy document, combining in one
volume the Bus Strategy and Rail Strategy, which have previously always appeared
separately. This former approach ignored the fact that both bus and rail have a vital, and
sometimes complementary, contribution to make to the County Council’s aims and
objectives. It also assumes that the markets for bus and rail services are totally separate
and different, and that decisions have already been made as to which mode is the best
solution to a particular transport need.
The purpose of this strategy is to set out what is needed in Northumberland to ensure
excellent public transport services and facilities which will address the needs of both
current and potential passengers in Northumberland and deliver the transport objectives of
the Government and the County Council.
The target audience for this strategy includes a wide range of stakeholders including
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All the County’s residents and visitors
Public transport passengers and representative organisations
Town and Parish Councils
Voluntary groups
The Department for Transport
Transport operators
The Council’s regional partners.
The County Council is convinced that the underlying principle of the Public Transport
Strategy must be to provide for the travel needs of passengers and freight customers.
These needs should come before the operational and commercial requirements of the
public transport providers.
An effective transport network is essential in order to give people, in both the urban and
rural areas of Northumberland, access to the opportunities and benefits that contribute to
the enjoyment of a better quality of life. Each public transport mode has common aims and
their provision will be integrated to provide the most effective transport service.
The effectiveness of transport links extends, not only to its provision, but also to difficulties
in physically accessing what is provided, and other equally important issues such as the
level of fares, journey time, personal security and comfort, and the extent to which local
communities are given a proper voice in shaping services.
A further aspect, which needs to be taken into account, is that peoples’ travel needs are
not constrained by administrative boundaries. This strategy therefore considers crossboundary services and services operating wholly within Northumberland on an equal
basis. The strategy also deals with the contribution rail services make in providing an
effective local as well as national network. This approach, in terms of delivery, makes
effective partnership working with adjoining local authorities, regional and other
stakeholders, users and transport providers absolutely essential. The County Council is
committed to this way of working and partnership is a recurrent theme through the Public
Transport Strategy.
5
Public Transport Strategy Objectives
The starting point for this Public Transport Strategy is the overall transport objectives of
the Local Transport Plan 2011-26 which have been developed to reflect national, regional
and local policy.
The Public Transport Strategy will contribute to achieving the objectives in the LTP by
promoting a public transport network which:
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Offers accessibility through the public transport system, both in terms of physical
access to transport and its availability, to the widest cross section of the population;
Gives people (including those who do not have access to cars) more travel choices
to access work, services and leisure activities;
Offers affordable fares to passengers;
Provides an attractive and sustainable travel alternative to the car thereby helping
to reduce traffic congestion and pollution levels and improving air quality and the
environment; and
Encourages integration with other modes of transport.
The Vision
The vision of Northumberland County Council’s Public Transport Strategy is:
‘An affordable, accessible, safe, convenient, environmentally sustainable and
integrated public transport network, capable of attracting an increasing market
share for public transport thereby contributing to the achievement of the County
Council’s objectives”
Important Aspects
Northumberland has a population which is 49% rural based which falls well below the UK
average population density ( the balance of the population being considered urban).This
has an impact on the cost and methods of provision for local bus services in rural areas,
creating difficulties which are not seen in the more densely populated areas of the south
east. The outcome for most parts of Northumberland is that the car is the main source of
competition on flexibility and speed. Commuter traffic, centres of education and work
based activities have created commercially sustainable service levels in the south east.
However, there are still pockets of population even here who do not have these benefits
and for whom supported services need to be evaluated.
The Council has established resources to pursue its ambitions outlined in this document
for the relevant modes of public transport. All of these are achievable by the recognition for
the need to provide consistent funding primarily from the Council, but also from external
sources such as Government led initiatives which require quality applications to be
successful.
With an aging population, the Councils aims need to be subject to revision and adaption to
reflect changing demands within Northumberland and the Strategy reflects this scenario.
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Chapter 1 gives the strategic overview for both road and rail travel. It provides
 information on bus and rail use trends,
 describes the existing local networks and partnership arrangements.
 background information on the legislation and policy context
 the vision, aims and objectives which frame the strategy.
Chapter 2 explains how we have developed the bus strategy. It sets out a list of
passenger requirements and includes a summary of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities
and threats in taking the strategy forward
Chapter 3 sets out how the Council will deliver the bus strategy. It includes detail on 63
key actions grouped under the themes of Service Delivery, User Confidence and
Infrastructure & Schemes.
Chapter 4 describes how we will fund the strategy.
Chapter 5 gives the strategic overview for rail. It provides information on the
Northumberland rail network, franchises, passenger trends, existing levels of service and
partnership arrangements. It provides a summary of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities
and threats and passenger requirements in taking the strategy forward.
Chapter 6 sets out how the Council will deliver the rail element of the strategy. It includes
detail on three objectives under the themes of Service Delivery, User Confidence and
Infrastructure & Schemes.
Chapter 7 describes how we will fund the rail elements of the strategy, using capital and
revenue funding from the County Council and external sources.
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1. Strategic Overview
1.1
Context
The Northumberland Public Transport Strategy sets out how the County Council will
ensure the provision of appropriate bus and rail services for both passenger and freight in
the area. The strategy supports the proposals outlined in the 2011 Local Transport Plan.
It informs stakeholders how both bus and rail services are provided, clarifies the different
approaches required to each mode, what to expect from the Council and how the Council
expects to work with transport operators and communities. It aims to deliver the wider
objectives of the Government, the North East Region and the County Council.
1.2
Northumberland’s characteristics
Northumberland covers an area of over 500,000 hectares of which 49% is rural. The
population is 307,186 of which 49% live in rural areas. This is reflected in the population
density, which at 61.12 people per km2, is far below the regional or UK averages of 292.77
and 242.02 respectively. The rural nature of much of the County is also reflected in car
ownership, which is slightly above the national average and much higher that the regional
average. There are, however, considerable variations within the County, mainly between
the urbanised, more densely populated but less prosperous South-East and the more
rural, thinly populated but generally more prosperous West and North.
The effects of this are as follows:
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Bus services are easier and less costly to provide in the South East, due to the
higher population density, lower car ownership and shorter distances between
locations. The bus network is therefore more extensive and heavily used, so more
services are commercial, without needing County Council financial support
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In the North and West, particularly the most remote rural areas, bus services are
more difficult and costly to provide, due to lower population density, higher car
ownership and greater distances between settlements. The bus network is
therefore much less extensive and more services need County Council financial
support.
1.3
Passenger Trends
There are 36 operators of registered local bus services in Northumberland. The largest
operator in the area is Arriva, which accounts for 78% of all journeys. Most of the
remaining journeys are on other operators including Go Ahead North East, Perryman’s,
Astley Coaches, Phoenix and Stagecoach. There are also a number of smaller companies
operating in the area.
The majority of public transport use in Northumberland is by bus. Buses carry about
35,000 passengers every day. About 26% of households do not have access to a car,
rising to 34% in some parts of the County. Thousands of people are therefore dependent
on bus services for their everyday travel needs.
8
The bus will continue to be the main provider of public transport in the County. Recent
years’ data for bus use in Northumberland has shown a slight reversal of a long-term
decline in bus use over the last forty years. The number of bus passenger journeys over
the past three years is detailed below.
2008/09 - 9.42m
2009/10 - 9.77m
2010/11 - 9.80m
In many cases, the bus is only used if there is no alternative because the car is considered
easier and more convenient to use. However, car ownership has increased significantly
over the past 10 years. This will place greater pressure on the local bus service network.
Rail patronage has grown significantly in Northumberland over the past ten years. This is
shown in the table below for the Tyne Valley line and the East Coast Main line.
This has produced overcrowding on some services as well as causing pressure on
passenger facilities at stations, particularly car parking. This has resulted in the Council
delivering new or extended car parks at Stocksfield and Alnmouth. Future plans include
improved car parking at Cramlington, Morpeth, Hexham and Berwick. These capital
improvements at rail stations are discussed later in this document.
The authority is campaigning for improved rail services to cope with the increase in
passenger demand, through timetable and franchise consultation exercises, and by
lobbying the relevant TOCs.
Tyne Valley Station Usage
Station Name
Haltwhistle
Bardon Mill
Haydon Bridge
Hexham
Riding Mill
Corbridge
Stocksfield
Prudhoe
Wylam
Total
2002/2003
2009/2010
2010/2011
71,562
5,538
25,734
364,530
32,912
76,704
61,108
161,462
104,738
904,288
74,046
6,450
30,180
381,098
33,118
81,711
62,222
168,461
108,732
946,018
48,890
4,801
16,055
306,191
25,177
48,890
50,476
111,450
79,516
691,446
9
% Change
51.45%
34.35%
89.98%
24.46%
31.54%
67.13%
23.27%
51.15%
36.74%
36.82%
East Coast Station Usage
Station Name
2002/2003
Berwick-Upon-Tweed
Chathill
Alnmouth
Acklington
Widdrington
Pegswood
Morpeth
Cramlington
Total
2009/2010
2010/2011
419,454
2,612
192,380
268
6,398
2,688
228,252
87,374
939,426
NA
2,645
214,424
108
5,119
1,101
244,468
85,459
553,324
331,108
1,500
86,436
727
5,481
2,417
123,142
40,886
591697
% Change
26.68%
76.33%
148.07%
-85.14%
-6.60%
-54.45%
98.53%
109.02%
52.83%
The current level of rail services at stations in Northumberland may be found in the table
below. The stations with the most passengers are Hexham, Morpeth, Alnmouth and
Berwick, although Prudhoe has seen a significant increase in use in recent years. Hexham
station acts a rural hub and is the major station on the Tyne Valley line and has
experienced a considerable increase in commuting into Tyneside.
Berwick, Alnmouth and Morpeth have also seen significant increases in commuting into
Tyneside, but have also seen significant increases in traffic on long distance journeys to
London, Scotland and the West Midlands, markets which are served by East Coast and
Cross Country Trains. The County Council continues to campaign for more stops by
LDHS service at stations in Northumberland, and for existing stops to be maintained
1.4
Legislative Framework
The Transport Act 1985 deregulated the bus market and allowed commercial bus
operators the freedom to choose routes, timetables and fares and to change or withdraw
services, subject to providing the required period of notice. Bus services can also be
procured by local authorities to fill in gaps in the commercial service network (provided
they do not compete with commercial services). The Act imposes a legal requirement on
Councils to:
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Secure the provision of whatever public transport services they consider
appropriate to meet public transport requirements which are not otherwise
provided; and
Consult widely when producing policies and plans.
This Act was the most fundamental piece of transport legislation before or since, in that it
set up the structure for the bus industry which remains in place today. Under this
structure, local bus operators may run whatever services they choose with the aim of
making a profit. Such services, often termed ‘commercial’ services, are run entirely at the
discretion of the operating company who is free to set the route, timetable and fares and
make whatever changes it likes. The County Council has no control over such services,
and it does not pay any bus company any overall subsidy. Instead, the County Council’s
role is to identify gaps in the commercial service network and, where it deems that these
10
need to be filled, provide financial support for services that fill these gaps. In all most all
cases, the contracts to provide these services are awarded by competitive tender.
The Transport Act 2000 imposed legal requirements on Councils to:
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Develop and implement policies for integrated, efficient and economic transport;
Produce a Local Transport Plan (LTP);
Produce a Bus Strategy;
Take into account the needs of elderly and disabled people;
Determine what bus information it should provide; and
Have regard to government policies on the environment.
The Transport Act 2008 gave local authorities improved powers to influence the provision
of local bus services in their area. It also removed the statutory requirement to produce a
Bus Strategy, although buses remain a key element of the LTP.
Legislation from the Education Act 1944 to the Education and Inspections Act 2006
have set out what local authorities have to provide regarding school transport. These
impinge on bus services in that they have shaped demand for travel to and from school.
The Railways Act 1993 brought about the privatisation of the rail industry and the
abolition of British Rail. The act separated the rail operations from the provision of rail
infrastructure, and the following bodies were created:
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Railtrack PLC to be the provider of rail infrastructure
All passenger rail operations to be formed into rail franchises and tendered to
Train Operating Companies (TOCs)
An Office of Rail Regulator (ORR)
The Office of Rail Passenger Franchising (OPRAF)
The 2000 Transport Act set up the Strategic Rail Authority, which took over the duties of
OPRAF, and also assumed responsibility for strategic rail planning to provide some co
ordination to the fragmented rail industry which resulted from the 1993 Railway Act. In
2002 Railtrack PLC was declared bankrupt, and was replaced by Network Rail which is a
not for profit company.
The 2005 Railways Act further changed the structure of the rail industry as follows:
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A new DfT rail division created to set the strategy and level of public expenditure
for the railways, specify passenger rail franchises and produce Regional Planning
Assessments
The SRA is abolished with its strategic role passed to the DfT and its operational
planning role to Network Rail
Network Rail leads industry planning, sets timetables and has responsibility for
operating the network and for its performance. Network Rail is also responsible
for producing Route Utilisation Strategies
TOCs continue to operate rail services under franchise agreements with the DfT.
The ORRs role is to protect the rights of investors, customers and to ensure
government value for money. It is responsible for ensuring safety, performance
and cost.
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Community Rail Partnerships continue as a means of enabling more local
decision making
Freight Operating Companies receive greater certainty about their rights on the
national network in order to encourage greater long-term investment by operators
and business
Northumberland County Council Rail Powers
Northumberland County Council is required under the 1985 Transport Act to “…secure the
provision of such public passenger transport services as the council consider it appropriate
to secure to meet any public transport requirements within the county which would not in
their view be met apart from any action taken by them for that purpose”
The County Council as a transport authority has a general duty to co ordinate public
transport provision including rail transport. However, although the authority provides
revenue support to socially necessary bus services, it does not do so with rail transport at
present, although it could do so if approved.
The County Council promotes rail transport in line with Local Transport Policies, and
campaigns for improved rail services in Northumberland. This is mainly done through rail
timetable and franchise consultations carried out by the DfT, TOCs and Network Rail.
The County Council at present provides funding for capital rail improvements particularly at
rail stations with funding from the LTP. The authority also coordinates external funding
bids for rail improvements from the DfT, other public bodies and from the private sector
including train operating companies. The authority also promotes other larger scale capital
rail projects such as the proposals to introduce passenger services to the Ashington, Blyth
& Tyne rail network
1.5
National Policies
The Department for Transport’s Guidance on Local Transport Plans set out the five key
goals for development of the UK’s future transport policy and infrastructure. These are set
out below:
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Support Economic Growth - Ensure a competitive transport industry by
simplifying and improving regulation to benefit transport users and providers and
maximising the value for money from transport spending
Reduce Carbon Emissions - Deliver quantified reductions in greenhouse gas
emissions consistent with the Climate Change Bill and EU targets.
Promote Equality of Opportunity - Enhance social inclusion by enabling
disadvantaged people to connect with employment opportunities, key services,
social networks and goods through improving accessibility, availability, affordability
and acceptability.
Contribute to Better Safety, Security and Health - Reduce the risk of death,
security or injury due to transport accidents. Reduce social and economic costs of
transport to public health, including air quality impacts in line with the UK’s
European obligations. Improve the health of individuals by encouraging and
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enabling more physically active travel. Reduce the vulnerability of transport
networks to terrorist attack.
Improve Quality of Life and a Healthy Natural Environment - Manage transportrelated noise in a way that is consistent with the emerging national noise strategy
and other wider Government goals. Minimise the impacts of transport on the
natural environment, heritage and landscape and seek solutions that deliver longterm environmental benefits. Improve the experience of end-to-end journeys for
transport users. Sustain and improve transport’s contribution to the quality of
people’s lives by enabling them to enjoy access to a range of goods, services,
people and places.
McNulty Report
The DfT is concerned over the cost of operating the rail network. The McNulty report was
commissioned by the last government to look at ways of reducing the cost of operating the
railway. Although the study has only recently reported, it contains radical plans for reform
of the rail network including the splitting up of Network Rail into regional units, longer rail
passenger franchises and local control of rail passenger franchises for local rail services.
The McNulty report will have long term implications for the rail industry, but hopefully will
reduce the cost of operating the rail network to enable the industry to cope with increasing
passenger demand.
1.6
Local Policies
Community Strategy
Every Local Authority is required to produce a Community Strategy to promote local
economic, social and environmental well-being and contribute to sustainable development
in the UK. ‘Northumberland: Resilient for the Future, Sustainable Community Strategy for
Northumberland’ (March 2011) identifies seven Big Partnership issues:
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Making climate change work to our advantage;
Maintaining and creating sustainable communities;
Rebalancing our economy;
Giving everyone a voice and influence;
Providing healthy lifestyle choice;
Supporting our young people into adulthood; and
Delivering services differently.
Transport, and in a local context this mainly means bus and rail services, has a vital role in
achieving all of these.
Local Transport Plan
Northumberland’s Third LTP seeks to build on the success of the previous Plans and takes
account of the national regional and local policy context, stakeholder engagement as well
as having due regard to our legal duties as the local highway Council. The goals describe
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what we are trying to achieve to tackle the key challenges and form the basis of the third
LTP. We want our transport system to:
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Support Northumberland’s economic competitiveness and growth by delivering
reliable and efficient transport networks;
Minimise the environmental impact of transport by reducing carbon emissions and
addressing the challenge of climate change;
Promote greater equality of opportunity by improving peoples’ access to services;
Improve transport safety and security and promote healthier travel; and
Ensure that transport helps to improve quality of life for residents, employers and
visitors.
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Supporting local economic growth whilst minimising the impact on carbon emissions and
maximising access to services, safety and health will lead to a better quality of life for our
residents, businesses and visitors and contribute towards Northumberland’s long term
vision.
The LTP also recognises the important role that bus travel can play in managing the
forecast increase in traffic growth and improving access to services. The provision of
frequent and reliable bus services and high quality facilities is essential in encouraging
motorists out of their cars. However, the dispersed nature of population in rural parts of
the County mean those local services are often not commercially viable. More innovative
and flexible services need to be developed to provide that transport connections that these
communities need.
1.7
Vision, Aims and Objectives
Vision
The Northumberland Public Transport Strategy has the following vision:
‘To ensure all residents can access the key services and facilities that they need
from convenient, safe, affordable and attractive public transport services,
infrastructure and facilities, while also promoting the economic development of
Northumberland.’
Aims
This strategy contains the general policies to ensure that bus services meet user
requirements to a specified standard. The strategy also outlines the additional facilities
connected with bus services to be provided. To address these user requirements, 12
objectives have been determined and grouped under three broad aims. The three aims
and their objectives are detailed below.
1)
Service Delivery - This aims to provide and maintain frequent, reliable and
accessible high quality bus and local rail services in Northumberland. This also
14
requires the continued development of high speed rail services which are vital to the
economic development of the County.
2) User Confidence - This aims to create and maintain an environment with the right
level of safety, information, affordability and customer care and that enables people
in Northumberland to take advantage of both bus and rail transport.
3) Infrastructure and Schemes - This aims to provide and maintain high quality bus
and rail infrastructure that is convenient and attractive to users and service
providers
Objectives
Service Delivery is supported by six objectives. Further detail on each key development
area follows in the next chapter.
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Network Operation - To develop and maintain an integrated network of local bus
and local rail services in Northumberland.
Long Distance High Speed Rail Services – To maintain and develop the present
network of long distance high speed services serving Northumberland for the
economic development of the County and North East region
Rail Freight - To encourage rail for the transport of goods, for the economic and
environmental benefit of Northumberland and the North East Region
Community Transport Services - To develop and maintain community transport
services for those people who are unable to access the mainstream public transport
network.
School Transport and Education Needs - To encourage the use of mainstream
bus services to reduce the number of children travelling to school by car.
Capacity Building in Local Communities – to help local communities to devise
their own solutions to transport needs, wherever possible involving local
organisations.
User Confidence is supported by five objectives. Further detail on each key development
area follows in the next chapter.
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Information - To ensure that users and potential bus and rail users have access to
information that is accurate, easy to understand and use and available before and
at all stages of their journey.
Fares and Ticketing - To provide a broad range of appropriately priced and flexible
tickets.
Concessionary Fares – To reduce the cost of travel by local bus services for those
most in need.
Customer Care - To create a good public transport journey experience.
Safer Travel - To improve the actual and perceived safety of bus and rail travel
through their whole journey
Infrastructure is supported by six objectives. Further detail on each key development
area follows in the next chapter.
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Bus Shelters and Stops - To provide a waiting environment that is comfortable
and secure whilst projecting an image of high quality standards.
Interchanges and Bus Stations - To provide comprehensive, high quality and
attractive interchange between different bus services and modes.
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Vehicle Standards - To ensure that buses are comfortable, clean and accessible to
all.
Rail stations – To provide a waiting environment that is comfortable and secure
while projecting an image of high quality standards
Route Upgrades – to promote the maintenance of a high quality route
infrastructure in partnership with Network Rail and TOCs and to sponsor the
development of new rail route infrastructure
Rolling Stock – To ensure that trains are comfortable, clean and accessable to all,
and to promote additional capacity through the acquisition of new rolling stock for
local rail services to meet rising demand
This strategy aims to achieve significant improvements in bus service provision for the
benefit of existing and potential local bus users and visitors to the area. How we intend to
do this is outlined in the Chapter 3 – Delivering the Strategy
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2.
Local Bus Services
2.1
The Network
The current network has been divided into five areas to aid description. The description
indicates the spread of available service both geographically and in terms of journeys to
work, shops, evenings and Sundays. It also comments on the degree services are
commercial or supported.
South East Northumberland
There is a dense network of services connecting Blyth, Cramlington, Ashington, Bedlington
and Morpeth with each other at minimum frequencies of hourly. In many cases there are
buses every 20 minutes or better. Evening and Sunday services are also available.
There are frequent direct services to Newcastle, many taking advantage of the network of
dual-carriageways to offer relatively speedy journeys. There are links from Blyth and
Cramlington to Killingworth, Whitley Bay and North Shields with frequent daytime services
and more limited evening and Sunday links. .
This network is operated on a near wholly commercial basis. The core network is
supplemented by a limited number of supported services providing access to/from other
locations.
A1 and Coast Corridor
There are core services operating North-South along the A1 from Newcastle and Morpeth
direct to Alnwick and beyond, also from Newcastle and Morpeth to Alnwick via Widdrington
and Amble. These operate at least every hour and include evening and Sunday services.
North of Alnwick there are direct services to Berwick via the A1 every two hours and,
through a combination of services provided by more than one operator a service beginning
to approach hourly from Alnwick along the coast through Craster, Seahouses and
Bamburgh to and on to Berwick. There is however no evening service north of Alnwick
and only a limited Sunday service, one that is expanded in summer months.
Whilst primarily commercial south of Alnwick, the service is mixed north of Alnwick being
partly commercial and partly supported. Several key peak journeys are contracted
primarily for the transport of school children and sixth form students both into Alnwick and
Berwick. This helps financially underpin the remaining commercial journeys.
Journeys serving Alnmouth form an important bus/rail link between Alnmouth station and
Alnwick, also between Alnmouth station and Amble. Holy Island is served by a contracted
route to and from Berwick. During winter this service operates Wednesdays and
Saturdays only, but operates up to six days per week in the height of summer.
17
Tyne Valley Corridor
The East-West Tyne Valley corridor from Newcastle to Hexham on both sides of the river,
then on to Carlisle via Haltwhistle and the A69, forms a strong local bus corridor.
South of the river there are five buses per hour to and from Newcastle and Prudhoe, with
three of these continuing via Stocksfield, Riding Mill, and Corbridge to Hexham. These are
complemented north of the river with an hourly direct bus from Newcastle to Carlisle via
Heddon, the A69, Corbridge, Hexham and Haltwhistle, also hourly from Newcastle to
Hexham via Wylam and Ovingham. With the exception of this last service, all these routes
include evening and Sunday services.
The service via Wylam and limited services within Hexham, between Newbrough and
Hexham, and also between Ovington, Wylam and Prudhoe are supported by the Council.
All other services on this corridor are operated commercially.
The above all year round services are complemented between Easter and October halfterm by the Hadrians Wall bus service AD122. This service involves buses from
Newcastle and Carlisle that overlap between Hexham, Walltown and Birdoswald to provide
an attractive means of access to the Wall for walkers and to the major attractions for
visitors not wishing to use their cars. It is funded by both Northumberland and Cumbria
Councils as well as a broad consortium of other partners. Patronage on the service
continues to grow (+6% in 2010). The service is at the forefront of Hadrians Wall
promotion, and the cornerstone of the Heritage Partnership’s sustainable access strategy.
Ponteland
In terms of local transport, residents of Ponteland appear to have a strong focus on
Newcastle. There is a frequent (every 30 minutes) service operated commercially
between the two areas. The limited late evening service available on Friday and Saturday
nights and the Sunday service is operated with Council support.
Recently, the supported service that links Matfen and other villages West of Ponteland
with Newcastle has been extended to start back from Hexham and been diverted via
Newcastle Airport. This has created new opportunities between Ponteland and Hexham
and between Hexham and the Airport.
Rest of the County
The rest of the County comprises the more sparsely populated deeply rural areas. The
overall network here is more sparse, services are low frequency, there are no evening or
Sunday services apart from a limited number of tourist oriented services in summer and
services are operated under contract to the Council.
Daily journey to work and shop opportunities are provided on the following routes:
•
Coldstream to Berwick;
•
Wooler to Berwick;
•
Wooler to Alnwick;
•
Thropton and Rothbury to Morpeth and Newcastle;
•
Colwell and Barrasford to Hexham;
18
•
•
Bellingham to Hexham; and
Allenheads and Allendale to Hexham.
The above services are complemented by additional services that cater for off-peak travel
only, many operating just one day per week to the nearest market town. To maximise
flexibility in serving passengers that may live in diffuse and isolated areas several of these
journeys into Hexham plus one journey into Morpeth are operated as pre-booked Dial-aRide services by Community Transport.
Kielder is linked direct to Hexham and its rail station on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays
throughout the year, a link that needs further promotion to ensure it is well used.
2.2
Bus Partnerships
The delivery of this strategy will rely heavily on consolidating and expanding existing
partnership working between the Council, local bus operators and users. All partners will
need to work together to bring about the step change in quality that this strategy seeks.
The general roles and responsibilities of the various partners involved in the delivery of this
Bus Strategy are outlined below.
Partner
Role
Responsibilities
Northumberland
County Council







Local Bus
Operators


Provider of socially necessary bus
services contracted to bus
operators
Provider of public transport
information
Administration of concessionary
fares scheme
Support for community transport
services
Keeping traffic moving (Traffic
Management Act 2004)
Liaison with local communities
Commercial bus operator









Operating commercially viable bus
services
Giving 8 weeks notice before starting,
changing or terminating a service
Providing service information
Promoting services
Tickets


Enforcement of bus priorities
Personal safety

Police

Enforcing the law
Funding socially necessary bus services
Constructing bus related highway
schemes
Providing roadside infrastructure (bus
shelters and stops and low floor bus
kerbs)
Providing timetable information
Providing home to school and special
needs transport
Enforcing parking restrictions
Operating a concessionary fares scheme
Joint working with neighbouring authorities is also essential as people’s transport needs do
not recognise administration boundaries. To ensure that this bus strategy is not
undermined by incompatible policies, existing cross-boundary working will be developed to
ensure that proposals close to administrative boundaries are discussed and jointly
developed. This includes service development, ticketing systems and concessionary
fares.
19
2.3
Consultation and Involvement
The County Council publishes Northumberland Bus News, giving advance notice of
service changes. This is sent electronically to whichever Parish and Town Councils and
County Councillors are affected by each change and information is also posted on the
County Council’s website.
The issue of how to help communities devise their own solutions to transport issues is
dealt with in more detail in Chapter 3 under the heading “Capacity building in local
communities”.
Customer satisfaction with local bus services and information also needs to be known.
Customer satisfaction surveys should be carried out on an annual basis to measure
changes in the public perception of information provision of public transport. As a
consequence it is proposed to launch a customer satisfaction exercise in partnership with
Passenger Focus, the independent public transport users’ watchdog, and the independent
bus users’ group, Bus Users UK.
2.4
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats
Strengths

Good levels of accessibility from most communities to commercial centres in SE Northumberland

Established partnership working with bus operators and neighbouring authorities

Good cross boundary services to Tyne and Wear and the Scottish Borders

Relatively stable commercial bus network with frequent services throughout the day on most key routes
within the County

Interchange opportunities/facilities between the local bus and rail networks

Bus operator investment in low floor vehicles

Enhancement of the statutory minimum concessionary fares scheme
Weaknesses

Currently there are a number of bus services within the County that are not fully accessible

Lack of multi-operator bus ticket covering the whole of the County

A proportion of bus network based on historical patterns rather than current needs

Increasing traffic congestion within town centres resulting in reliability problems for bus services

Lack of bus services to some new housing estates around Northumberland

Inconsistent provision of infrastructure (shelters, poles and flags) at bus stops

Poor image of travelling by local bus services
Opportunities

Changing demographics of the County

Short journey to work patterns that are conducive towards the promotion of bus services

Low levels of car ownership are conducive to maintaining high levels of public transport usage

More effective Bus Quality Partnership to drive improvements

New funding opportunities arising from the regeneration of the County through regeneration programme
funding and developer contributions

Potential funding from external sources including DfT Local Sustainable Transport Fund and developer
contributions
20

Initiatives to encourage bus operators to introduce new environmentally friendly vehicles and fuels to
improve air quality and reduce noise

New housing growth within the County including major proposals for mixed use development
Threats

Increasing car ownership levels and growing car dependency

Increasing bus operator costs (fuel, wages and insurance) resulting in the withdrawal of commercial bus
services

Lack of revenue resources to support non-commercial but socially necessary bus services

Lack of revenue resources to maintain the Council’s commitment to provide high quality timetable
information across the County and other supporting measures

Increasing traffic congestion at key junctions in the town centres

Increasing tender costs to the Council for providing supported bus services

Threat to transport funding due to current economic situation

Fear of crime on and around the public transport network, including concerns due to vandalism of bus
shelters and stops
21
2.5
Passenger Requirements
There is a need for a high quality, efficient and safe network of public transport services
set by standards as seen from the customer perspective. The required standards are
listed in three groups covering the Quality of public transport, the Opportunity to use pubic
transport and Communication.
Standard
Passenger Requirements
Quality
Frequency
A bus service network is required which does not entail a lot of waiting around and
uncertainty. If people know that services are frequent and don’t have to work out
times and connections, they will be more likely to use them.
Punctuality
Service punctuality is very important to users and a key factor in patronage
generation, especially for encouraging people to shift from private car to bus.
Attractiveness and
Comfort
Bus users expect good standards of attractiveness and comfort at all stages of
their journey. This includes shelters that offer customers a safe and attractive
environment and modern vehicles that are clean and well maintained.
Journey Times
Buses need to move at a speed that is competitive with the car as well as being
consistent to maintain punctuality and reliability. There is however a divergence of
needs between a requirement for fast, attractive journey times and Network
Access (see below)
Customer Care
People want to be treated with the same high standards as developed in other
service sectors.
Direct Services
Innovative, direct services where mainstream bus services are not cost effective.
Some of these may be provided by more flexible demand responsive services.
Personal Safety and
Security
People need to feel safe at all stages of their journey, in particular women, young
people and the elderly.
Opportunity
Affordability
People want bus travel to be more affordable, in particular the young, the elderly,
lower income groups and people with access to a car who do not see any financial
incentive to use the bus.
Accessible Design
People want ease of access to vehicles without assistance, including those who
are less able bodied, in wheelchairs or are carrying shopping, luggage, pushchairs
etc
Network Access
Bus services and stops must be near to where people live and want to go, whether
this is work, shopping, education, health services or social and leisure activities.
Integration
Bus and rail services need to connect so that moving around the public transport
network is as easy and safe as possible.
Communication
Information
Bus users need high quality, concise and accurate information that is easy to
understand and use.
Promotion
A well promoted, clearly recognisable high-frequency network providing a
consistent hierarchy of infrastructure and services is essential.
Awareness
Coherent travel awareness schemes to raise awareness of travel issues and
problems of congestion and highlight the need for reductions in car use by the
effective promotion of public transport alternatives.
22
2.6
Government Guidance
The Department for Transport published ‘Guidance on Preparing Bus Strategies’ in
accordance with the Transport Act 1985 and 2000. The guidance stated that the Bus
Strategy must contain the authority’s general policies as to how best to carry out their
functions, so that:



Bus services meet those transport requirements of people within their area which the
authority considers should be met;
Those bus services are provided to the required standards; and
Appropriate additional facilities and services connected with bus services are provided
(including bus waiting facilities, bus priority, bus service information, interchanges and
integration) as the authority considers they should be.
The guidance also emphasised other requirements including:






Consultation with other local authorities, local bus operators and representatives of bus
users;
How the provision of subsidised bus services supports the achievement of it’s local
transport objectives and delivery of improvements for accessibility and social inclusion;
Policies for use of Rural Bus Subsidy Grant and continued support for previously
funded schemes under Urban and Rural Bus Challenges and Rural Transport
Partnership;
Regard for measures related to transport requirements needed in carrying out local
education or social services functions;
Improving access to jobs and services for those most in need, reduce congestion,
pollution and improve safety; and
Partnership working with bus operators.
23
3.
Delivering the Strategy - Buses
3.1
Service Delivery
Network Operation
Objective: To develop and maintain an optimised and integrated network of local bus
services in Northumberland.
Current Situation
The bus network in Northumberland covers a significant area. There are more than 80
bus services covering over 3,000 stops. The majority of the mileage operated by these
bus services is commercial and operated without subsidy by a combination of 12
operators.
At the time of drafting this strategy (2011), there are uncertainties and difficulties regarding
development of the local bus network. Central government has confirmed a significant
reduction (-20%) in Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) with effect from April 2012.
There are also significant pressures on local government finance which restricts the
opportunity for the Council to increase funding for local bus services. As a consequence,
there are challenges enough over the next few years in trying to retain the existing network
and overall level of access.
However, the Council’s priorities for network development need to be identified so that
opportunities are recognised and grasped. Future network development will depend on
partnership working between the County Council, bus operators, Community Transport
organisations and developers as well as Parish and Town Councils.
Crucial input to this process of identifying network improvements is that from bus
passengers and residents. The major bus operators engage with their passengers to try
and understand what they are currently doing right and what scope to there is to further
develop their services. The Council is increasingly in contact with local members and local
councils to garner their views. There is an on-going process of ensuring best use of
limited funds. Inevitably this will mean resources are withdrawn from some existing
supported services which deliver lower value-for-money in order to progress higher
priorities which better meet community needs.
The next section identifies potential network developments on an area by area basis that
have been identified by the Council but prior to extensive local consultation.
Future Developments
South East Northumberland
Cobalt Business Park in North Tyneside is a major location of job opportunities and
currently only has limited bus links with South East Northumberland. The Council would
like to see a frequent direct link from Ashington and Bedlington via Cramlington to Cobalt,
and is beginning to have initial dialogue with operators, Cobalt Business Park, and other
potential partners.
24
There are also limited direct bus links to local Hospitals including Wansbeck, North
Tyneside, and Freeman. Initial dialogue has taken place with NHS Commissioning in case
a partnership approach is able to deliver a more effective and efficient solution to Hospital
access.
Evening activity in Newcastle has increased lately following City Council and retailers
initiatives. The Council will work with the principal commercial operator in this area, Arriva,
to ensure consequent opportunities to enhance evening services to/from Newcastle are
taken.
Current trends, particularly by Arriva, of concentrating on links, mainly to Newcastle, which
are delivering passenger growth, will undoubtedly continue. It is important for the County
Council to identify when services are withdrawn from places which are away from main
routes and do not generate such large passenger numbers, and decide whether some
form of replacement can be provided..
A1 and Coast Corridor
There are no obvious opportunities to speed up the principal bus services along the A1
from Newcastle to Alnwick and beyond. Journey times are an hour and a quarter to
Alnwick and two and a half hours to Bamburgh. However, the Council will engage with the
operator, Arriva, to explore the scope for enhancing the quality of vehicle on the route to
provide higher comfort levels and/or premium features e.g. wi-fi connections.
The Amble, Acklington, and Hadston area has a regular hourly link to Morpeth and
Newcastle. Patronage from this area has potential to grow if the link can be made more
frequent. If extended north of Amble to Alnwick via Alnmouth this would offer a solution to
the lack of buses between the Links Estate at Amble and Alnwick. It would also transform
the Alnwick to Alnmouth station bus/rail link and foster growth in modal interchange.
The Northumberland coast is increasing in popularity. There are concerns that sustainable
transport options along the coast are currently inadequate and unattractive. There are
several bus routes serving the area but with different operators, different routes, uncoordinated times and lack of ticket interavailability meaning that the bus is failing to fulfil its
potential. It is recommended that an action plan is drawn up in partnership with local
operators, the Northumberland Coast AONB and other local stakeholders to chart a way
forward, address these issues and market the resulting service. The minimum aspiration
should be an hourly service along the core Alnwick – Alnmouth – Craster – Seahouses –
Bamburgh section seven days per week from Easter to end of October.
Holy Island is a popular tourist destination. The current bus service from Berwick serves
this market but with no Sunday service and for much of Spring and early Summer a limited
service. Again, there is potential to grow the market. This will be explored further with
local partners.
Tyne Valley Corridor
The principal cross-country long distance bus service 685 Newcastle to Carlisle suffers
from being split between commercial operators Arriva and Stagecoach North West.
Service timings are co-ordinated to produce a basic hourly timetable and certain tickets
are inter-available. However, in the absence of a formal partnership it is not possible for
the two operators to easily work together on service development for fear it is interpreted
25
by the Office of Fair Trading as anti-competitive collusion. It is recommended the Council
works with Cumbria Council to explore establishing a form of partnership that would
facilitate commercial development of the service. As a long distance service, the
Newcastle to Carlisle route would particularly benefit from vehicles with enhanced comfort
levels and features.
Other services in the Tyne Valley Corridor consist of several trunk routes linking principal
settlements from Hexham eastwards with each other and with Newcastle, plus less
frequent rural services from the villages to the principal towns plus town services in
Hexham and Prudhoe. The trunk routes, which are mainly commercial, are currently
performing well, with buoyant demand, while the rural network is fairly stable although it
does not meet all community aspirations. However, there is a discernible trend of
retrenchment with the Hexham and Prudhoe town services, with routes or part of routes
being withdrawn from places that show lower patronage or are difficult to serve. This has
resulted in some parts of these towns being left without buses resulting in isolation for
residents.
The successful Hadrians Wall bus service is to be kept under review and opportunities
taken to enhance the core Hexham to Walltown and Birdoswald section to as near a
regular hourly service as practical. Such a level of service would significantly increase
scope for frequent short-distance ‘hopping’ along the Wall and reducing the level of shortdistance car journeys in the area.
Ponteland
In the short term the objective will be to work with the commercial operator, Stagecoach
North East, to ensure consistent use of low-floor fully-accessible buses and to help
promote the service to ensure its sustainability. In the longer term the Council will explore
with the operator the scope for enhanced frequency, evening services, and wider coverage
of Darras Hall.
Currently there is no daily link between Ponteland and Morpeth i.e. passengers have to
travel via Newcastle. Such a link may improve basic connectivity in the County. The scope
for establishing a sustainable link will be explored as and when practical, possibly in
partnership with any future development proposals in the area.
Rest of the County
An apparent gap in the basic bus network is the link between Rothbury and Alnwick, likely
to be only available as a once per week shopping run. The business case for improving
such a service will be prepared as and when there are any prospects of funding such a
service.
The service between Hexham and Consett, previously comprising four off-peak return
journeys per day, was reduced as Durham County Council withdrew its financial support.
However, some improvements are now (Summer 2011) being made.
Sustainable tourism is a key priority in Northumberland. The scope to develop carefully
tailored transport solutions and to seek a broad range of funding partners will be explored
with key stakeholders such as the Kielder Partnership.
26
Otherwise the key ingredient for services in this area will be innovative lateral thinking to
try and maximise outputs and outcome from existing inputs. Synergies with Home to
School transport are already exploited and this will need continuous review. As part of this
mix the scope for partnership working with health related transport will be further explored.
Flexible solutions such as Dial-a-Ride or Voluntary Car Schemes will be implemented
where and when appropriate. The Council will work in partnership with Community
Transport wherever they can demonstrate overall improved value-for-money.
Key Action Areas











Work in partnership with operators to identify and implement service
enhancements;
Continue to subsidise non-commercial but socially necessary bus services where
appropriate;
Pump priming innovative bus services (dependent on external funding);
Increase the number of low floor buses in use on subsidised bus services;
Undertake regular monitoring of the punctuality and reliability of services;
Maintain the monitoring programme for tendered bus services, to ensure
compliance with contract conditions and specification;
Submission of bids for external funding, for example ‘Kickstart’ and RFA funding;
Continue to review issues relating to the quality of bus operation and evaluate
options for further development;
Consult stakeholders on future network development and maintain business
meetings with bus operators; and
Continue to review issues relating to the quality of bus operation in partnership with
operators as appropriate.
Build capacity in local communities to help them establish ways that can shape the
public transport network
Community Transport Services
Objective: To develop and maintain Community Transport services for those people who
are unable to access the mainstream public transport network.
Current Situation
Community Transport (CT) is often used to describe any service that is run by a
community, charitable or not-for-profit organisation. Such services mainly fall into three
categories:



Group Hire, whereby minibuses are offered for hire at affordable rates to local
organisations. Driver training and other support is often also offered.
Dial-a-Ride, which usually consists door-to-door transport on a pre-booked basis
using accessible vehicles
Volunteer car schemes, comprising a pool of volunteer drivers offering journeys
in their own cars in return for payment towards expenses, and co-ordinated by a
central office
27
There are a range of organisations across Northumberland offering the above services
CT’s Unique Selling Points are:






No requirement to make a profit, therefore all income is ploughed back into the
organisation and, therefore, the community.
Greater community participation and ownership
Lower cost base due to absence of profit requirement and greater use of volunteers
Ability to raise funds from a wide range of sources, locally and otherwise
Better, more caring image
Greater motivation among staff, both paid and volunteer
Future Developments
CT has an expanding role to play in Northumberland’s public transport network due to:



An ageing population, requiring more tailor-made transport
Growth in personalised budgets, giving many people who would previously have
been given “Social Services” transport more freedom to choose transport
themselves to the places they want to go
Pressure on budgets meaning that social services, special needs education and
health transport needs to be more integrated
CT operators already run a range of services under contract to the County Council, and
there is potential for them to play a greater role, particularly as different types of transport
are integrated, allowing CT operators to achieve economies of scale. For example, the
same vehicle could be used at different times of day to take children to school, provide
non-emergency health transport, undertake a public bus service for an isolated rural
community during the day and evening transport for young people wanting a night out in a
nearby town
Key Action Areas


Work with CT operators, other transport commissioners (eg the Care Trust) and
communities to integrate CT with other passenger transport - mainstream public
transport and education and social care transport
Explore CT’s role in meeting new transport needs generated by the Personalisation
Agenda
School Transport and Education Needs
Objective: To encourage the use of mainstream bus services to reduce the number of
children travelling to school by car
Current Situation
In line with its statutory duty, the County Council provides free home to school transport,
when:
28


Pupils of first school age live more than two miles away from their designated
catchment area school by the nearest available route;
Pupils of middle and high school age live more than three miles away from their
designated catchment area school by the nearest available route.
There are additional provisions for pupils from low income families, and for pupils with
Special Educational Needs.
Current legislation specifying these distances is based 1944 Education Act. Since then,
perceptions among children and their parents of acceptable walking distances have
changed enormously. Meanwhile, bus companies mainly offer child fares only up to the
age of 14.
In addition, Northumberland County Council offers the following:
1. It may provide free transport for children attending a school out of the catchment
area when the parent has expressed a preference for the child to be educated at
a faith school provided that it is the religion or denomination to which the parent
adheres and that such religious education is not available within the catchment
school
2. Where children do not receive free transport, concessionary fares for spare
seats may be available on contracted home to school transport vehicles.
3. Free transport for students aged over 16 attending the nearest school or college
that delivers their course(s)
Future Developments
Wherever possible, free transport for pupils of high school age is provided on existing
buses . This helps to maintain the viability of the public bus network
The County Council continues to maintain and improve the quality of school buses, for
example by specifying minimum ages for vehicles
Key Action Areas




Maintain and improve quality of school transport
Continue to offer bus passes at concessionary rates for spare seats on school
transport where these are available
Work with bus operators to promote special fare offers for young people
Continue to provide Independent Travel Training for pupils who need help and
support to use buses independently
29
3.2 User Confidence
Information
Objective: To ensure that users and potential bus users have access to information that is
accurate, easy to understand and use and available at all stages of their journey.
Current Situation
The County Council primary objective is to support Traveline North East as the main
provider of accurate and up to date bus travel times. We have a strong and consistent
performance in providing updates. The Council uses the same data to provide printed
information which is displayed in timetable cases at main bus stops throughout
Northumberland. The assistance of both Arriva and Go North East in distributing the
information is appreciated.
A wide range of printed information is also available. However, the quality and availability
is dependent on a number of factors:
 Operators of commercial services undertake their own timetable arrangements
 The ability of these commercial operators to resource and promote initiatives
 The contractual arrangements for supported bus services can require the operator
to provide a minimum level of information – the quality varies dramatically
 The Council undertakes to provide timetables for certain contracts
The overall impression is that some operators are well represented and have won awards
while other areas are patchy.
Future Developments
The Council has an Information Strategy which is covered separately in this document.
The salient observations and expectations from the publics’ perception are repeated and
expanded upon in the following paragraphs.
Passengers have different information needs at different stages of their journey. They
need high quality, user focused information for use before the journey, at the bus stop, on
the bus and at point of connection/destination. Passengers need to know whether their
proposed journey is possible by public transport. Bus service route maps need to be
available in both printed and web-based interactive format. Partnership working with
operators, tourist attractions and parish councils would help facilitate distribution to
libraries and information centres as well as shops, post offices and attractions.
Passengers need re-assurance they are standing at the correct stop and that their
particular journey is operating on time. The basic requirement is a clear and up to date
timetable display. Additional timetable displays will be restricted to sites considered to be
essential. Existing displays with few passengers will be replaced with information directing
them to call Traveline for information. Electronic real time passenger information displays
will be provided where appropriate and funding allows. Mobile phone applications (e.g.
Next Bus) will also be developed and widely promoted.
30
On-vehicle displays can be used to inform passengers of the approaching stop, but this is
only practical where Advanced Vehicle Location (AVL) systems are installed on the bus.
Although not regarded as a high priority, the Council will explore the opportunity for new
and replacement vehicles as they are acquired.
Most bus passengers need to complete their journey by a short walk to their destination.
The needs of public transport passengers will be included in the proposed review of
pedestrian signage at key locations.
Key Action Areas
The key areas that need to be developed include:
 Production of a ‘network map and guide’ in partnership with local bus operators;
 Develop a web-based interactive public transport map;
 Develop applications to distribute information via the internet and mobile phones;
 Establish an integrated database to include publicity distribution network;
 Further develop partnership working to assist in the timely update of displays;
 Concise, clear information at stops to a standard design;
 Restrict the provision of new bus stop displays to key sites;
 Introduce permanent displays referring to Traveline at lightly used stops; and
 Further develop Real Time Information capability in Northumberland as appropriate.
31
Ticketing
Objective: To provide a broad range of appropriately priced and flexible tickets.
Current Situation
The provision of attractive and affordable ticketing is essential to growing the market for
bus travel. Making interchange between different public transport services easier enables
the whole network to be sold more effectively. Ticketing is also vital in tackling social
exclusion as it enables subsidies to be targeted to specific groups in an accountable way.
The existing ticketing arrangements are often restricted to the issuing operator and are
difficult to understand. This makes pubic transport difficult to use, increases cost and
restricts travel choice.
Future Developments
The Council believes that the application of modern technology is the key to delivering
modern and efficient public transport services. SmartCard technology can be used to
introduce innovative ticketing solutions that will lead to increased patronage. This is being
developed through the North East Smartcard Ticketing Initiative (NESTI). This will be
rolled out in Northumberland by Arriva, GO North East, and Stagecoach during 2012.
The Council’s current contract conditions requires contractors to undertake their best
endeavours to equip themselves with SmartCard enabled electronic ticket machines as
and when the NESTI scheme is suitable for rolling out beyond the larger operators.
Smaller operators in the north of the county use already SmartCard equipped ticket
machines. More preparation will be required by smaller operators in the South East and
the West of the County.
The Council is working with operators to improve existing ticketing arrangements. One
initiative is to introduce a daily travel ticket that will allow passengers to use services by
Travelsure, Glen Valley, Perryman and Arriva in the area between Alnwick and Berwick
including the coast and Wooler. The scope to extend the Hadrians Wall Rover ticket
issued on the AD122 Hadrians Wall bus service to other local bus services in the area is
also being actively explored.
Key Action Areas






Pursue Northumberland interests in the North East Regional Smart Card
consortium;
Work in partnership with smaller operators to ensure the NESTI scheme is
extended to all operators;
Encourage the extension of ‘Plus Bus’ in Northumberland to improve interchange
between bus and rail services;
Encourage fares and ticketing proposals in the Public Transport Forum, and also
within possible bus quality partnerships;
Ensure fares on contracted services are reviewed at least once annually; and
Continue to explore the scope for tickets between operators to improve flexibility
and value for money for passengers.
32
Concessionary Fares
Objective: To reduce the cost of travel by local bus services for those most in need.
Current Situation
The County Council is the Concessionary Travel Authority (CTA) for Northumberland.
Legislation requires that qualifying elderly or disabled people can travel free on all local
bus services anywhere in England from 9.30am to 11pm on Mondays to Fridays and all
day Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays. The Council receives a Central Government
Grant intended to cover the cost of reimbursing bus operators for the statutory minimum
concessionary travel scheme, on a ‘no better, no worse off’ basis.
The County Council currently provides enhancements to the statutory minimum scheme to
address specific local issues. This includes:
 Elderly people’s concessionary travel passes are valid in Northumberland from
9.00am, with no late evening cut-off time;
 Disabled people’s concessionary travel passes are valid in Northumberland all day,
every day; and
 Northumberland concessionary passes are valid for relevant journeys in Scotland.
Future Developments
The Council will continue work with commercial operators with the objective of creating
attractive value for money fare deals on local bus services and will work in partnership to
help market such offers.
Key Action Areas



Continue to fund and administer a Concessionary Travel scheme that includes the
discretionary elements of being valid from 9am Monday to Friday (rather than
9.30am) for the elderly, and without time restriction for disabled people;
Review the most effective and value for money approach to ensuring minimum
levels of mobility for those unable to access local bus service; and
Work with operators in partnership to ensure attractive fare offers are marketed to
young people.
33
Customer Care
Objective: To create a good public transport journey experience.
Current Situation
Public transport services need to reflect the high standards of customer care that have
been developed, and people now expect, in other service sectors. People need to know
how to complain when they are not happy about the service they have received. Local bus
operators and the Council also need to know what people are not happy about so that
improvements can be made.
Future Developments
Customer care training is seen as important for all frontline staff. Helpful bus drivers and
helpful staff at travel centres and bus stations make a difference in helping to create a
good public transport journey experience.
Travel information also needs to be made available at appropriate locations where
customers wish to find it. The current arrangements for providing travel advice will be
investigate to identify where this can be extended through appropriate training and
support.
Key Action Areas




Work with public transport operators to investigate the feasibility of a ‘one stop
shop’ approach to public comments and complaint;
Develop customer care proposals with bus operators, including better staff training;
Make customer care a priority in the Public Transport Forum; and
Follow customer care ideas as part of possible bus quality partnerships.
34
Safer Travel
Objective: To improve the actual and perceived safety of bus travel throughout their whole
journey.
Current Situation
There is evidence that public transport use is influenced by fears for personal security.
This is a particular concern for women, older people and ethnic minorities and at certain
times – particularly later evenings. The part of the journey spent waiting, walking to or
from the stop often causes the most fear. Behaviour of young people is also felt to be
intimidating or threatening by some passengers. Familiarity with the area and mode of
travel can influence feelings of security, with local residents and those who use bus
services frequently feeling more secure than visitors to the area and infrequent users. The
actual and perceived security needs to be improved to re-assure existing bus users and
encourage people to use public transport. Studies have demonstrated that measures to
improve personal safety could encourage the increased use of public transport by 10%.
Future Developments
It is important that transport providers work to improve perceived and actual personal
security. Good personal security is made up of many elements. This includes well
designed walking routes to bus stops, bus stations and interchanges, clean and graffiti free
infrastructure, CCTV coverage at bus stops and on vehicles, staff presence on and around
the bus network, lighting and signage as well as help and telephone points. A strategic
approach with all partners needs to developed to deliver improvements to perceived and
actual security. Maximum benefit will be gained by tackling problems in partnership with
local bus operators, rail operators, the Police, the Council and Community Safety
Partnership on a ‘whole journey’ basis.
Key Action Areas




Bus shelter damage reduction programme including hot spot analysis;
Encourage partnership working between local bus operators and the Community
Safety Partnership;
Improvements to walking routes to bus stations, railway and on-street interchanges
based on the ‘whole journey’ concept;
Improving the behaviour of young people on buses
35
Capacity building in local communities
Capacity building has been defined as building skills within communities to encourage their
engagement, and also giving professionals the skills to connect better with communities. It
is thus a two-way process
Objective: to help local communities to play a part in shaping their bus services
Current Situation
The County Council has traditionally aspired to keep local communities informed of
forthcoming bus service changes. This has been done by letters and news bulletins sent
to the affected Town/Parish Councils and County Councillors when significant service
changes occur. Concern has been expressed by local communities on two counts:


Insufficient notice of changes
Lack of proper consultation when changes take place (linked to the amount of
notice given)
Future Developments
The policy of simply informing local communities of forthcoming changes does a disservice
to the role that those communities can play in





Providing local expertise as to the best and most practical routes for buses to
follow
Giving up to date information about key facilities – for example surgery times, or
which clinics at a health centre are most attended by people who use buses
Promoting and publicising bus services
Giving feedback on services that have been provided
Making even small funding contributions
When the town bus service in Newbiggin by the sea was withdrawn in 2010, the Town
Council took the initiative to work with the County Council to fund and provide a
replacement service, at lower cost, which runs two days a week and is operated by a local
Community Transport group. This is but one example of a local community taking its
future in its own hands and achieving a positive result.
County Council officers involved in public transport therefore need to act in accordance
with principles of community capacity building to help achieve the optimum outcome
Key Action Areas




Early identification of forthcoming bus service changes
Reallocation of staff resources to ensure communities are given the earliest
possible information about changes
Devotion of staff time to working with communities to devise locally-led solutions
Ultimately, adoption of a pro-active approach, working with local communities on a
regular basis, even when no service changes are planned, to gain the benefit of
their local expertise in identifying and promoting key bus services and taking action
where services are causing concern due to low usage.
36
3.3 Infrastructure and Schemes
Bus Shelters and Stops
Objective - To provide a high quality passenger waiting environment that is safe to use and
accessible to all.
Current Situation
The quality, standard of maintenance and general ambience of the facilities where people
wait for buses contributes significantly to the overall image of bus travel. There are over
3,960 bus stops and 714 bus shelters in Northumberland. The majority of shelters are
maintained by Parish Councils. However, quality, design and condition of bus stop
infrastructure vary significantly across the County. Problems include old bus stop poles,
flags and shelters, inadequate illumination at bus stops, frequent vandalism, inadequate
maintenance, inadequate weather protection and a lack of bus stop clearways. A
significant number of bus stops are not provided with low floor kerbs. The criteria for the
replacement and up grading of bus shelters is based upon requests from Parish, Town,
and Councillors following consultation with residents, using a standard scoring system. A
priority list for bus stop replacement is produced, which is implemented as financial
constraints allow.
Future Developments
The provision of high quality bus infrastructure that is both safe to use and accessible to all
is critical in developing bus travel in Northumberland. Bus stops need to be clearly visible,
well designed and maintained with clear service information. A standard design for shelter
will continue to be used that recognises the rural and urban nature of the county. Raised
kerbs will be provided in line with investment by bus operators in their vehicle fleets.
Infrastructure work within the rural areas will be undertaken in conjunction with other
highway infrastructure improvements to add value and reduce costs.
Key Action Areas





Increasing the rate of replacement of bus shelters, flags and poles and information
displays to ensure consistent standards of quality, accessibility, weather
protection, illumination and visibility in accordance with the bus route hierarchy;
Achieving standards consistent with the Disability Discrimination Act at all stops;
Standardisation of bus stop/shelter design and the use of clearways;
Improved standards of maintenance of bus shelters and stops to deter instances
of vandalism and graffiti; and
New bus stops and shelters are planned as an integral part of developments.
37
Interchanges and Bus Stations
Objective - To provide comprehensive, high quality and attractive interchange between
different bus services and other travel modes.
Current Situation
Easy interchange allows more journey opportunities by giving access to a wider public
transport network than would otherwise be possible. The quality of the interchange
facilities contributes significantly to the overall image of bus travel and is important to the
development of an integrated public transport system.
There are 17 railway stations, six town centre bus stations and five on-street interchanges
in Northumberland. All railway stations are managed by the local rail operator, Northern
Rail or East Coast. Town centre bus stations include Alnwick, Ashington, Blyth, Morpeth,
Hexham and Wooler. On-street interchanges include Bedlington, Berwick and Seaton
Delaval.
Future Developments
The development of interchange between bus, rail and other transport is essential to
increasing public transport use in Northumberland. A programme to upgrade town centre
bus stations will be developed to provide safe, user friendly and clean waiting facilities,
improved travel information and improved standards of maintenance to deter vandalism.
Bus station upgrades will comprise a programme of refurbishment schemes as well as
major proposals for Ashington and Hexham Bus Stations integrated with private sector led
town centre redevelopment. Integration between bus and rail services will also be
improved at Morpeth and Cramlington Railway Stations as part of planned major
improvements to car parking and traffic management.
Key Action Areas







Provide new bus stations in Hexham and Ashington as part of major town centre redevelopment proposals;
Improve facilities for bus services at Morpeth and Cramlington Railway Stations;
Upgrading of waiting facilities, with improved shelters, lighting and information at
on-street interchanges;
Improve travel information at bus stations and on-street interchanges, including real
time information and printed displays as appropriate;
Continue to promote the Plus Bus integrated ticketing scheme to rail and bus users;
Explore the opportunity for introducing smart card ticketing between bus and rail
services; and
Improved physical access to interchanges, including safe walking routes, good
signage and improved access for the mobility impaired.
38
Vehicle Standards
Objective: To improve the accessibility, security and emissions of local bus service
vehicles.
Current Situation
Although there is no inherent reason why an old bus cannot be well-maintained and wellpresented, in practice the older the bus the more likely it is to be noisy and uncomfortable
and the more likely it is that it will be raising questions regarding its safe and reliable
maintenance. Newer buses also benefit from easier access for the mobility impaired, onboard CCTV as well as lower carbon emission levels.
Future Developments
Since April 2010, all new supported bus contracts have been let on the basis that they are
no older than 10 years at the start of the contract. This has meant the oldest and most
problematic vehicles are slowly being removed from the Council’s contracts. It is proposed
to continue with the maximum age criterion.
Fully-accessible buses not only benefit the disabled, particularly those in wheelchairs, but
all those with any measure of mobility handicap e.g. mothers with children in buggies,
those going on holiday with lots of luggage. Currently the Council does not insist on fullyaccessible buses on its contracts. Recent tenders do indicate that in some circumstances
there can be a measurable premium in tendered prices for supplying a fully-accessible
vehicle.
However, since 2000 all new large single-deck buses have been obliged to be fully
wheelchair accessible. Other sizes of buses have had subsequent dates when fullaccessibility has become mandatory. The introduction of the Council’s ten year maximum
age for contracted services has resulted in some contracted services now benefiting from
accessible vehicles. It is proposed to keep this issue under review and move to specifying
fully-accessible vehicles as soon as the premium for such vehicles appears to have been
overcome.
Although not mandatory, many buses in Northumberland are already fitted with CCTV.
Consideration could be given to specifying CCTV in vehicles used on Council contracts.
The low carbon vehicles that are available ‘off the shelf’ suitable for the UK market are
diesel-electric hybrids. These combine a relatively small diesel engine with electric drive
and typically save one third of the CO2 emissions of a comparable conventional bus.
Vehicles of this kind will be introduced to certain Newcastle City bus routes in the next 12
months. Vehicle emissions in Northumberland will be reduced as the older vehicles are
gradually replaced over time.
Key Action Areas



Continue to specify a maximum vehicle age of 10 years at the commencement of
Council contracts;
Adopt the specifying of full-accessibility for buses used on Council contract; and
Work in partnership with local bus operators to encourage the take up of buses with
low carbon emissions, initially in the Blyth area.
39
3.4 Bus Information Strategy
Introduction
The Transport Act 2000 requires local transport authorities, including NCC, from time to
time to determine what local bus information should be made available to the public, and
the way it should be made available. The strategy aims to bring about continuous
improvements to the quality, accessibility and scope of information on public transport in
Northumberland, taking account of the resources available and the cost-effectiveness of
the measures adopted or pursued and the willingness of others to provide support.
In compiling the Strategy the County Council acknowledges the cooperation and support
already provided by the bus operators, neighbouring authorities, local communities and
other partners in ensuring information has been provided. We anticipate their continuing
input and support for this to continue.
The passenger or prospective passenger has different needs for information at different
stages of the journey. The key stages of the journey are:




journey planning
at the bus stop
during the journey
interchange and/or link to final destination
passenger feedback on completion of journey
The demand for the more traditional means of providing information on local buses, such
as printed timetables and maps, has declined in recent years. Many enquiries are made
through Traveline with its centralised call centres, websites and electronic journey
planners. In recent times the number of phone calls to Traveline has remained static and
has started to decline, while enquiries online have increased significantly. It would not be
the intention of this Strategy to forget the need for the more traditional means of providing
information, particularly bearing in mind the varied needs of bus users. However a key
feature of the Strategy is to provide information in a range of different formats, and to take
account of the cost-effectiveness of the different means of communication and distribution.
Good information has an important role in encouraging the use of public transport both by
existing bus users and by others who might not otherwise consider the bus as an option
for their journey.
When bus operators provide local bus services, whether or not with financial support from
the local authorities, they are required by law to register their services with the Traffic
Commissioner, including full detail of the route, stops, and timetables, and to send copies
of the registrations to the local authorities. With this information from all operators, and
with its own local knowledge, Northumberland County Council is uniquely placed to
provide information comprehensively and impartially on all local bus services in the county.
Journey planning
What is required




Information on routes or destinations that may be available
Information on whether a proposed journey is feasible by bus
If the destination is known – detail of routes, times, fares etc
Where to find additional detail, eg location of bus stops
40

A recognition of the diversity of the requirements of existing and prospective bus
users
What NCC will do

Maintain and develop a database of all registered local bus services - using detail
from the operators’ registrations the County Council will continue to maintain detail
of all local bus services, including departures from all stops on all routes, and
ensure it is kept up to date at all times. The electronically-stored information has
many uses, including data for Traveline, an increasing number of public websites
and mobile applications, printed departure lists at bus stops, and electronic displays
at bus stations. It includes data for forthcoming changes to timetables as well as
current information, and detail on temporary changes for holidays and Christmas.
Additional information on fares, and also on low-floor and wheelchair-accessible
buses, is increasingly included.

Provide support for Traveline, with accurate complete and timely information - the
County Council will continue its role with other north east local authorities and bus
operators as a partner in Traveline North East, and support Traveline’s standards
for comprehensiveness (ie all stops on all routes) and timeliness (ie changes to
timetables included in advance). With the other partners we are participating in a
review of Traveline, which is considering whether more effective ways can be found
for supporting the call centres and for considering enhancements to the service.

Consider new ways of making information available, where cost-effective - external
information providers are increasingly making use of local authority data to enhance
their own products. Examples have included the NextBuses website, for obtaining
information using a mobile phone. The County Council will continue to encourage
such developments, and ensure the data that they use remains accurate, complete
and up to date.

Maintain printed alongside electronic information, so far as is possible within
available resources - many people may be unaware or uncomfortable with
electronic information. The County Council may provide printed timetable leaflets
for contracted services or groups of services with more than one operator, in places
where there is a particular need and where resources can be used effectively. The
County Council will also explore ways of encouraging the wider availability and
accessibility of electronic sources.

Maintain pages on the NCC website with information on public transport - pages on
the website currently include timetables for the more popular bus and train routes,
concessionary bus fares, current changes to timetables, and links to bus and train
operators’ websites.

Develop a map or maps to show local public transport, printed or online - we are
investigating the possibility of a map of routes in Northumberland has been
suggested as a good way of promoting the network, perhaps with downloadable
timetables.
41
At the bus stop
What is required





Reassurance that the planned journey is available as expected
At as many locations as possible: a printed current departure list
At other locations: details of how to obtain current information, by phone or online
Continuous improvements to infrastructure, including poles, flags, signing
Continuous improvements to displays and procedures for producing them
What NCC will do

Maintain and develop the database (above) to support current information at stops
- the database includes all departures from all stops and has the capability for
efficient and timely production of a printed display for anywhere in the network.

Support for the national bus stops database (NaPTAN) - NaPTAN provides a
national standard for information used by several public websites, as well as bus
operators. The County Council will maintain a database of information on all stops
in its area, including precise locations and the facilities provided.

Ensure printed information at stops is updated in a timely fashion - the number of
stops provided with a printed display is of necessity limited by the resources
available to maintain them. The County Council will however work with others
including local councils and bus operators to provide printed information locally and
to keep it up to date. Where bespoke displays are not possible at any location, a
fixed display with a reference to Traveline and to other sources may be considered
as an alternative.

Develop opportunities for real-time information, both at stops and online - the
County Council is a partner in the north east real-time project (NESTI) and
electronic real-time displays (ie indicating the approach of a suitably-equipped bus)
may be cost-effective at some locations. We will develop and encourage the use of
real-time through this and other channels eg mobile phones.

Investigate opportunities for improvement, as budgets and resources allow

Older, missing or damaged bus stops can be a deterrent to travel, so we will ensure
that new facilities are of a standard design. We will also take account of
developments in technology for promoting bus use at the bus stop.
During the journey
What is required

Info on the bus to show route, destination, and in some cases intermediate points
What NCC will do

Require printed displays to be provided on buses used on contracted services - the
law requires bus operators to carry timetables and fares information to be carried on
buses for consultation by passengers. Where the services runs on contract to the
County Council, we will include a requirement for clear displays of route and
destination on the exterior of the vehicle, as well as leaflets inside.
42

Encourage operators to provide similar information on all services - the provision of
good-quality information on buses assists confidence and helps to support the
sustainability of the commercial route network.

Particular consideration for routes used by visitors and infrequent travellers marketing and promotion of services as well as during the journey by the bus
operator or NCC is important for anyone who may be unfamiliar with the route or the
area. The County Council will work with the bus operators to promote the use of
buses by visitors as well as residents of Northumberland.
Interchanges and bus stations
What is required


Printed comprehensive information on routes and times for all services
Information on other facilities as available, including special needs
What NCC will do

Work with bus operators, developers and others when planning new interchanges the County Council will ensure that information provision is an integral part of the
development of new interchanges and other public transport projects.

Investigate opportunities for improvements for existing interchanges - some of the
places where people wait for buses or seek information are not ideally designed or
may not be inviting or as comfortable as would be preferred. The provision of
information will be considered an essential part of any improvement to an existing
interchange as it is for a new one.
Passenger feedback
What is required

A measure of customer satisfaction with local buses and the information available
What NCC will do

Maintain records of the use made of a range of different channels, where these are
available - such channels include Traveline, websites and mobile applications. As a
partner in Traveline North East the County Council already obtains much regional
data on the enquiries received and responded to, by phone and electronically.

Respond to feedback from users, and make improvements where appropriate - we
will work with other sections of the County Council to provide a consistent approach
to encouraging and responding to comments, complaints and suggestions for
improvement.

Work with other information providers to ensure consistency and completeness such providers might include for example town centre or business developers,
tourism operators, and big event organisers, who may have an interest in promoting
the use of public transport and supporting local networks.

Undertake regular satisfaction surveys in partnership with users’ representatives the County Council will work with other organisations such as Passenger Focus and
Bus Users UK to encourage and respond to feedback from bus users.
43
4.
Funding the Strategy - Buses
This strategy seeks improvements in the provision of bus services and facilities. The
delivery of this strategy is dependent on the assembly of revenue and capital funding from
the County Council as well as external sources.
4.1 Revenue Implications
The County Council has a fixed, limited revenue budget for supporting bus services that
are not provided commercially. The current trend among major bus operators is to
concentrate resources on routes which carry the most passengers, which tend to be faster,
direct routes between major places. The consequence of this a gradual withdrawal of less
well-used services, and those to places which are difficult to serve by bus. This mostly
affects rural communities and also those parts of towns that are away from main bus
routes. The funding challenge for the County Council is therefore


To ensure the limited budget is used to best effect in the light of gradual service
withdrawals from less well-used routes
To try to maintain service levels in the face of reduced funding from other sources
and rising costs within the bus industry
4.2 Capital Implications
The capital programme supporting the delivery of this strategy is supported by the Local
Transport Plan (2011-2016). The LTP includes a number of bus initiatives designed to
improve bus travel as a key element of addressing the transport problems in the County.
The overall package for public transport improvements over the period 2011-12 to 20142015 is £1.92 million. This includes better access for buses at rail stations as well as bus
stop and shelter improvements.
Additional funding from operators will also be sought to assist accelerating improvements
and support existing capital funding. This is in addition to current investment in vehicles
and staff by operators. Other options for increased funding could include contributions
from developers and through bids to the Local Sustainable Transport Fund that could be
made available by the Department for Transport for the period 2012/13 to 2014/15.
44
5.
Developing the Strategy - Rail
5.1
Northumberland Rail Network
The existing rail network in Northumberland can be described under three key headings;
East Coast Main Line, Tyne Valley Line and Freight routes.
East Coast Main Line
The rail network in Northumberland is focused on the East Cost Main Line (ECML) running
from the Scottish border near Berwick to the borders of the Tyne and Wear conurbation in
the south. Principal stations within Northumberland include Berwick, Alnmouth and
Morpeth. The ECML is a key rail route for freight and passengers linking London and the
north of England with Scotland, operating high Long Distance High Speed (LDHS)
services, inter regional services, local rail services and freight. Commuting from stations in
Northumberland into Tyne and Wear is becoming increasingly important.
Tyne Valley Line
The Tyne Valley line runs from Newcastle to Carlisle. Key stations within Northumberland
include Prudhoe, Corbridge and Hexham. Passenger rail services are mainly local in
nature, but commuting into the Tyne and Wear conurbation is becoming increasingly
important. A limited train service is available to Scotland. The line carries a significant
volume of freight traffic and also acts as an important diversionary route for passenger
services between the East and West Coast main rail lines.
Freight Routes
A number of key freight routes exist in South East Northumberland. These include the link
from Benton Junction to Blyth, Bedlington, Ashington and Woodhorn, and the link from
Bedlington to Morpeth as well as links to open cast mining sites north of Ashington. The
route from Benton Junction to Ashington and from Bedlington to Morpeth have been the
subject of proposals for the re-instatement of passenger services supported by the County
Council. This is covered in more detail later in this document.
45
5.2
Passenger Rail Franchises
A total of four passenger rail franchises serve Northumberland catering for a range of
local, regional and national travel demands.
East Coast Trains
This franchise includes the major Inter City rail services on the East Coast Main Line from
London to York, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Aberdeen. In Northumberland, Morpeth,
Alnmouth and Berwick stations are served by East Coast services. The franchise was
taken over by the Government at the end of 2009 and is expected to be re- tendered by
the end of 2012.
Arriva Cross Country
The Cross Country Franchise provides a national network centred on Birmingham. In
Northumberland, Morpeth, Alnmouth and Berwick stations are served by cross country
train services from Birmingham and the south coast to the south and Scotland to the north.
Northern Rail
Northern Rail operates the majority of local rail services in Northumberland. Service
operate between Newcastle and Carlisle serving stations in Northumberland such as
Prudhoe and Hexham. On the East Coast Main line, services operate as far north as
Chathill, although in practice Northern services north of Morpeth are much more limited
with the majority of services operating between Newcastle, Manors, Cramlington and
Morpeth. Stations served include Pegswood, Alnmouth and Chathill.
ScotRail
ScotRail operates a limited rail service between Newcastle and Stranraer via the Tyne
Valley line to Carlisle. This service calls at Prudhoe and Hexham stations within
Northumberland.
At present, passenger rail franchising is the responsibility of the DfT. Discussions have
been held with local authorities including Northumberland on the possibility of local
authorities becoming responsible for the franchising of local rail services. The Northern
Rail Franchise is due to expire in 2014. The re-franchising of the Northern Rail Franchise
may be one of the first tasks for a possible North East Franchising Authority.
Franchising of local rail service will give North East authorities more power to specify local
rail timetables, bid for new rolling stock and integrate local bus and rail services. Whilst
the franchising of local rail services could be a major boost for local authorities to influence
the development of rail transport, the appropriate level of funding must be made available
from central government for the benefits of this to be achieved.
Figure 1 shows the Northumberland rail network and stations.
46
47
5.3
Existing Levels of Service
The current levels of service at Northumberland stations are listed below. The County
Council at the very minimum would like to maintain these levels of service, but has target
aspirations for increased frequencies at some stations.
Northumberland’s Desired Passenger Rail Service Levels
Station
Current
Service
Required
Service
Operator
Service
Less than
hourly
Hourly
Cross Country
Edinburgh – Birmingham - Reading
Less than
hourly
Hourly
East Coast
Edinburgh – Newcastle- York –
London
Chathill
4 trains daily
8 trains daily
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Alnmouth
Less than
hourly
Hourly
Cross Country
Edinburgh – Birmingham - Reading
Less than two
hourly
Less than
hourly
East Coast
Edinburgh – Newcastle- York –
London
4 trains daily
8 trains daily
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Acklington
3 trains daily
Les than two
hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Widdrington
3 trains daily
Hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Pegswood
3 trains daily
Hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Morperth
6 trains daily
8 trains daily
Cross Country
Edinburgh – Birmingham - Reading
6 trains daily
(7 Friday)
8 trains daily
East Coast
Edinburgh – Newcastle - York –
London
Hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Haltwhistle
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Bardon Mill
Less than two
hourly
Les than two
hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Haydon Bridge
Less than two
hourly
Less than two
hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Hexham
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Half hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Hexham
2 trains daily
2 trains daily
Scotrail
Newcastle – Glasgow - Stranraer
Riding Mill
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Corbridge
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Hexham
Stocksfield
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Prudhoe
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Half hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Hexham
2 trains daily
2 trains daily
Scotrail
Newcastle - Glasgow
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Hexham
East Coast
Berwick
Cramlington
Tyne Valley
Wylam
48
5.4
Partnerships
The delivery of this Strategy will rely heavily on consolidating and expanding existing
partnership working between the Council, Train Operating Companies, Network Rail, the
Department for Transport, bus operators and local rail user groups. All partners will need
to work together to bring about the step change in quality that this strategy seeks. The
general roles and responsibilities of the various partners involved in the delivery of this rail
Strategy are outlined below.
Partner
Role
Responsibilities
Northumberland
County Council
Providing public transport
co-ordination powers in
Northumberland
Train Operating
Companies
Providing local and long
distance high speed rail
services
 Promoting improvements to rail facilities, to the
accessibility of rail services, in the personal safety and
confidence of people using rail stations and on the
journey to and from rail stations, in partnership with TOCs
and Network Rail
 Biding for external funding for rail investment including
DfT funding
 A key stakeholder in rail consultation exercises including
timetable, and rail franchising, with Network Rail, TOC’s
and the DfT.
 Instigator of major rail projects in partnership with
Network Rail , TOCs, DfT, and other stakeholders
 Promote integration between rail, bus and community
transport services
 Liaison with local rail user groups
 Seek to safeguard sites with the potential for improved
station facilities
 Operating franchised rail services
 Operating open access rail services.
 Planning of timetable revisions in partnership with
Network Rail and DfT
 Providing service information
 Promoting services
 Tickets
 Promoting station improvements in partnership with
Northumberland County Council and Network Rail
Network Rail
Providing rail
infrastructure including
track, signalling
electrification equipment
and rail stations
 Responsible for maintaining and upgrading rail
infrastructure
 Responsible for coordinating timetable revisions in
partnership with TOCs and the DfT
 Responsible for producing Route Utilisation Studies
Joint working with neighbouring authorities is also essential as people’s transport needs do
not recognise administration boundaries. The County Council works with neighbouring
authorities to promote rail development in the North East Region. Regional links are
particularly important, as rail transport provides key long distance high speed services out
of the region.
In 2004, the Community Rail Development Strategy was launched by the former Strategic
Rail authority (SRA) and is now under the overall control of the DfT Rail group, who have
an officer dedicated to Community Railways.
49
The initiative has been labelled ‘New Life for Local Lines’. The DfT describes the aim of
Community Rail Development as ‘putting local and rural railways on a sustainable basis for
the long term, so that they can continue to offer a vital service for passengers and freight
and contribute to the local economy, as well as meeting Government targets on
accessibility, the environment and social inclusion.’
Community Railways have four basic principles:




Increased patronage, revenue, and if appropriate, freight use
Involve local communities
Reduce operating costs
Enable local rail to play a greater part in economic and social regeneration.
Community railways are normally local or rural routes, single or double track with one
predominant passenger operator and some freight. They normally serve areas covered by
just one or two local authorities with transport planning responsibilities.
Northumberland County Council supports the Community Rail initiative as a matter of
policy.
In Northumberland there is one community rail partnership at present, which is the Tyne
Valley Community Rail Partnership (TVCRP). The TVCRP supports the development of
the Tyne Valley rail line between Newcastle and Carlisle. This is described in more detail
in Chapter 3.
5.5
Consultation and Involvement
Customer satisfaction with local rail services and information also needs to be known.
Customer satisfaction surveys should be carried out on an annual basis to measure
changes in the public perception of information provision of public transport. As a
consequence it is proposed to launch a customer satisfaction exercise in partnership with
Passenger Focus, the independent public transport users’ watchdog.
50
5.6
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats
Strengths

Good levels of accessibility from the Tyne Valley Line and ECML into Tyneside

Established partnership working with TOCs, Network Rail, rail user groups and neighbouring
authorities

Good main line links from the ECML to regions including London, Scotland, and the West Midlands

Rising rail patronage levels across the County

Interchange opportunities/facilities between the rail networks and local bus networks

Investment planned in new main line trans serving the ECML

Infrastructure improvements at selected rail stations
Weaknesses

Poor rail accessibility from South East Northumberland to Tyneside and beyond

Lack of multi-modal ticketing, only available at selected Plus Bus stations

Increasing lack of train paths on the East Coast Main Line restricting traffic growth, and resulting in
suppressed traffic levels at some Northumberland stations

Lack of additional carriages to respond to growth on local rail services

Increasingly ageing rolling stock on local rail services, with no immediate prospect of replacement

Inadequate passenger facilities at many Northumberland rail stations, including poor passenger
information provision

Lack of car parking restricting rail traffic growth at some stations

Vandalism at some stations contributing towards fears for personal security

Lack of late night local train services particularly on the ECML
Opportunities

Changing demographics of the County encouraging more commuting into urban areas

Increasing traffic congestion in Tyne and Wear , encouraging switch to rail commuting

Low levels of car ownership are conducive to maintaining high levels of public transport usage

Development of ABT network would link SE Northumberland into the rail network

New funding opportunities arising from the regeneration of the County through regeneration programme
funding and developer contributions

Potential funding from external sources including DfT Access for All Fund and developer contributions

Potential of longer rail franchises could increase rail investment

New housing growth within the County including major proposals for mixed use development

Regional control of rail franchising could give greater potential for developing the local rail network
Threats

Fear of crime on the public transport network

Increasing costs of operating the rail network threatening rail investment, to be addressed by the
McNulty report

Reduced capital funding from LTP towards rail projects from NCC

Lack of revenue resources to maintain the Council’s commitment to provide high quality timetable
information across the County and other supporting measures

Lack of NCC staff resources to promote rail investment or services in Northumberland

Above inflation rail fare rises

Threat to transport funding due to current economic situation
51
5.7
Passenger Requirements
There is a need for a high quality, efficient and safe network of public transport services
set by standards as seen from the customer perspective. The required standards are
listed in three groups covering the Quality of public transport, the Opportunity to use pubic
transport and Communication.
Standard
Passenger Requirements
Quality
Frequency
Rail services are required which do not entail a lot of waiting around and
uncertainty. If people know that services are frequent and don’t have to work out
times and connections, they will be more likely to use them.
Punctuality
Service punctuality is very important to users and a key factor in patronage
generation, especially for encouraging people to shift from private car to rail.
Punctuality is monitored by the Office of Rail Regulator (ORR).
Attractiveness and
Comfort
Rail users expect good standards of attractiveness and comfort at all stages of
their journey. This includes stations that offer customers a safe and attractive
environment and modern trains that are clean and well maintained.
Journey Times
Trains need to move at a speed that is competitive with the car as well as being
consistent to maintain punctuality and reliability.
Customer Care
People want to be treated with the same high standards as developed in other
service sectors.
Personal Safety and
Security
People need to feel safe at all stages of their journey, in particular women, young
people and the elderly.
Direct Services
Direct long distance high speed rail services to key regional centre are essential
for the Northumberland economy to be competitive
Opportunity
Affordability
People want rail travel to be more affordable, in particular the young, the elderly,
lower income groups and people without access to a car
Accessible Design
People want ease of access to vehicles without assistance, including those who
are less able bodied, in wheelchairs and with accompanying children.
Network Access
Rail services must be accessible to where people live, work, shop and enjoy
leisure activities. Railway stations must have good bus service links and adequate
car parking.
Integration
Bus and rail services need to connect so that moving around the public transport
network is as easy and safe as possible.
Communication
Information
Rail users need high quality, concise and accurate information that is easy to
understand and use.
Promotion
A well promoted, clearly recognisable high-frequency network providing a
consistent hierarchy of infrastructure and services is essential.
Awareness
Coherent travel awareness schemes to raise awareness of travel issues and
problems of congestion and highlight the need for reductions in car use by the
effective promotion of public transport alternatives.
52
6.
Delivering the Strategy - Rail
6.1
Service Delivery
Local Rail Services
Objective: To develop and maintain a network of integrated local rail services in
Northumberland.
Current Situation
Local rail services in Northumberland operate on the East Coast main line and the Tyne
Valley Line between Newcastle and Carlisle. All local trains are diesel powered and
operate at speeds of up to 75 mph, with sprinter and pacer type trains. The majority of
local services are operated by the Northern Rail franchise, with a limited number operated
by ScotRail on the Tyne Valley Line. Local rail services serve all rail stations in
Northumberland. Figure 1 shows the Northumberland rail network.
Future Developments
East Coast Main Line
The biggest problem for developing local services on the East Coast Main Line is the lack
of line capacity. Stations at Pegswood and Widdrington have been identified as having
suppressed demand but capacity on this double track section of route is limited,
particularly with the growth of LDHS services. The lack of late night services from
Newcastle back to Morpeth suppresses the demand for early evening services into
Newcastle. The County Council would like to see later services serving Cramlington and
Morpeth, at present the latest departure from Newcastle to Morpeth is 10.00pm.
While the County Council wants to see existing frequencies maintained at rail stations. It
has aspirations to increase frequencies at key stations to meet demand. These
aspirations may be found in the table below. If the County Council assumes rail
franchising powers, there may be greater scope to increase local rail service frequencies.
The authority will continue to lobby the DfT, Network Rail and TOCs for more stops in
Northumberland on LDHS services.
The age of the local train rolling stock fleet is also a matter for concern, with the majority of
fleet over twenty years old. At present there are no plans for an early replacement. If the
North East region were to obtain franchising powers as described earlier, there may be a
greater capability for the region to bid for replacement rolling stock.
Cross Border Rail Services
Transport for Scotland is supporting a study to look into the feasibility of operating a semi
fast electric service between Edinburgh and Newcastle, operated by electric multiple unit
trains. This service could replace some of the local trains between Newcastle and
Morpeth, providing an improved quality of service, and displacing older diesel trains. It
would also provide new opportunities for local trips between stations in Northumberland,
for example between Newcastle and Berwick. The County Council backs this study and
has been a stakeholder in the Transport for Scotland study. The authority hopes that the
53
proposal could lead to improved cross border rail services and additional local rail services
in Northumberland.
Belford Station
The County Council has been considering proposals to re-open the railway station at
Belford, this is described in greater in the section on infrastructure and schemes.
Ashington Blyth and Tyne
The County Council has also been considering proposals to re-open the Ashington, Blyth
& Tyne rail network to passengers. This is described in greater in the section on
infrastructure and schemes.
Tyne Valley Line
The Tyne Valley line runs from Newcastle to Carlisle, key stations within Northumberland
include Prudhoe, Corbridge and Hexham. Passenger rail services are mainly local in
nature, but commuting into the Tyne and Wear conurbation is becoming increasingly
important. A limited local train service is available to Glasgow via the south west coast of
Scotland.
The train service between Newcastle and Carlisle is hourly with additional trains
terminating at Hexham providing a half hourly service from Newcastle. In the last ten
years commuting between Hexham and Newcastle has increased dramatically, with
overcrowding becoming a problem on some peak services. The County Council would like
to see additional rolling stock provided on Tyne Valley Local services.
The signalling system on the Tyne Valley is in need of renewal, this could help to reduce
journey times and increase route capacity. The Northern Route Utilisation Strategy makes
no mention of any proposals for renewal of Tyne Valley line signalling. The County
Council would like to see plans for signal upgrades on the route to be brought forward.
Tyne Valley Community Rail Partnership
The Tyne Valley Community Rail Partnership (TVCRP) is the only Community Rail
Partnership in Northumberland. The TVCRP covers the Newcastle to Carlisle rail route
now marketed as the ‘Hadrian Line’. The Tyne Valley line runs through Tyne and Wear,
Northumberland and Cumbria, although the majority of the route is in Northumberland. The
Partnership employs a ‘Partnership Officer’ who is based in Hexham station and works for
the Partnership for two days a week. Partners in the Partnership include Northumberland
County Council, Nexus, Cumbria County Council, Northern Rail and East Coast Trains.
The County Council attends partnership board meetings, and public meetings held by the
partnership.
In line with other Partnership members the County Council has provided financial support
to the Partnership since 2007, and has provided support of £5000 in capital funding per
year in 2007 and 2008, and will do so again in 2009. This funding has gone towards
providing infrastructure for Tyne Valley rail publicity and community information related to
the line in and around Tyne Valley stations.
54
Other activities promoted by the Partnership, include the production of a line guide in
conjunction with Northern Rail and the promotion of special event trains such as Santa
specials and real ale trains which help to promotion increase patronage on the line.
The County Council views TVCRP as being an important element in promoting the Tyne
Valley Line. Community Rail Partnerships have been very successful in promoting the
development of local and rural rail in other parts of the country, with spectacular increases
in revenue on some routes in the West Country. The County Council considers that the
TVCRP could have similar potential for promoting the social and economic development of
the Tyne Valley line.
Key Action Areas











Continue to provide financial support to the TVCRP
Continue to have County Council officer representation on the TVCRP board
Continue to support the aims of the TVCRP, and in so doing support the
development of the Tyne Valley line
Support the case for signalling upgrades on the ECML, and Tyne Valley lines
Develop plans for the reopening of Belford station
Progress plans for the re-opening of the ABT rail network
Work with Transport for Scotland to develop the case for a cross border semi fast
electric train service
Campaign for a later train services between Newcastle and Morpeth
Define minimum train service frequencies for Northumberland stations
Campaign for a renewal o the local train fleet, particularly the Pacer trains
Make the case for extra carriages for North East local rail services
55
Northumberland’s Desired Passenger Rail Service Levels
Station
Current
Service
Required
Service
Operator
Service
Less than
hourly
Hourly
Cross Country
Edinburgh – Birmingham –
Reading
Less than
hourly
Hourly
East Coast
Edinburgh – Newcastle- York –
London
Chathill
4 trains daily
8 trains daily
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Alnmouth
Less than
hourly
Hourly
Cross Country
Edinburgh – Birmingham –
Reading
Less than two
hourly
Less than
hourly
East Coast
Edinburgh – Newcastle- York –
London
4 trains daily
8 trains daily
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Acklington
3 trains daily
Les than two
hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Widdrington
3 trains daily
Hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Pegswood
3 trains daily
Hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Morperth
6 trains daily
8 trains daily
Cross Country
Edinburgh – Birmingham –
Reading
6 trains daily
(7 Friday)
8 trains daily
East Coast
Edinburgh – Newcastle - York
– London
Hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Chathill – Morpeth - Newcastle
Haltwhistle
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Bardon Mill
Less than two
hourly
Les than two
hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Haydon
Bridge
Less than two
hourly
Less than two
hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Hexham
Hourly
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Half hourly
Half hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Hexham
2 trains daily
2 trains daily
Scotrail
Newcastle – Glasgow –
Stranraer
East Coast
Berwick
Cramlington
Tyne Valley
Riding Mill
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Corbridge
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Stocksfield
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Prudhoe
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Half hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Hexham
2 trains daily
Scotrail
Newcastle - Glasgow
Hourly
Northern
Newcastle - Carlisle
Wylam
56
Long Distance High Speed Services (LDHS)
Objective: To develop and maintain the present network of long distance high speed
services serving Northumberland for the economic development of the County and the
North East region.
Current Situation
Long Distance High Speed Services (LDHS) may be classified as services which operate
up to125 mph, and provide key inter regional and national links. In general trains that
operate these services are of a higher quality than those operating on local services,
providing a smoother ride in greater comfort. Typically facilities such as first class, catering
and WIFI access would be available. LDHS services in Northumberland are operated by
East Coast Trains, and Cross Country Trains.
All LDHS services in Northumberland operate on the East Coast Main Line (ECML) linking
the Scottish border near Berwick to the borders of the Tyne and Wear conurbation in the
south. Stations served by LDHS services in Northumberland are Berwick, Alnmouth and
Morpeth. The main ECML services operate from London to York, Newcastle, Edinburgh
and Aberdeen. At present these are operated by East Coast Trains, but the franchise is
due to be tendered in 2012. The new franchise could operate up to fifteen years. Other
LDHS services operating on the ECML are operated by Cross Country trains. The Cross
Country Franchise providers a national network centred on Birmingham. The franchise
offers services to south and west Yorkshire, Birmingham and the south coast, and
Scotland to the north.
Future Developments
East Coast Main Line
In the short term the County Council would like to maintain the existing LDHS stops at
stations in Northumberland. However in the longer term the authority would like to see an
increased number of stops by such services, to a wider range of destinations. There is a
particular problem with route capacity on the ECML between Newcastle and Edinburgh.
Early morning arrivals in London and late evening departures from London are particularly
important for business travellers and should be maintained and developed.
In October 2010 Network Rail published the Northern Route Utilisation Strategy (RUS)
which is meant to cover the development of the Northern Rail Network for the next twenty
years. There are proposals in the document to increase the frequency of trains between
Newcastle and Edinburgh which would give scope for additional stops in Northumberland.
However to achieve this will require the installation of additional bidirectional signalling
between Newcastle and Edinburgh, and the upgrading of the overhead line power supply.
The County Council would like to see these investments brought forward as soon as
possible.
The number of passengers using LDHS services continue to increase, as can be seen in
the earlier section on Rail Use Trends. These problems may be helped in the longer term
with plans for ‘High Speed Rail’ and the Inter City Express project described below.
57
Inter City Express Project
The DfT plan to introduce a new design of high speed train over the next fifteen years to
replace the existing High Speed Train diesel feet on the ECML. These trains will be
available in electric and bi mode form, the bi mode version will be capable of operating on
diesel and electric power, and will have a great passenger carrying capacity. The County
Council welcomes the early introduction of these trains to increase passenger capacity on
the ECML and the reduced carbon emissions from the reduction in diesel train use on
electrified sections of line.
High Speed Rail
The DfT has recently consulted on plans to construct a high speed rail network from
London to the north of England, this line is termed as High Speed 2 (HS2). The route from
London would travel via the West Midlands and then divide into a fork, with one line
serving Manchester and the other serving Leeds. Trains to Leeds would then join the East
Coast Main Line and continue north to serve York, Durham Darlington, Newcastle and on
to Scotland. Trains on the new section of line would travel at speeds of up to 200mph.
The County Council took part in the recent consultation exercise with the DfT and
supported plans for the construction of a High Speed rail network. However the authority is
keen to see trains originating from the high speed rail network, to make stops in
Northumberland to maintain the important London links. However new journey
opportunities could be opened up with reduced journey times between the West Midlands
and Northumberland.
The County Council appreciates the economic benefits High Speed Rail will bring to
Northumberland and the North East Region as a whole, but is of the opinion that the
completion date of 2032 is too slow when compared with European timescales for such
projects. The authority would in the longer term like to see the high speed network
extended to Newcastle.
Key Action Areas


Support the continued stopping of LDHS services in Northumberland
Campaign for additional LDHS services stopping in Northumberland, including key
early morning and early evening business trains
 Support the case for electric power supply upgrades on the ECML
 Support the case for signalling upgrades on the ECML and Tyne Valley lines
 Support the case for the introduction of Inter City Express trains in Northumberland
 Campaign for the construction of HS2 from London to Leeds and beyond
 Support the case for the completion of HS2 before 2032
58
Rail Freight
Objective: To encourage the use of rail for the transport of goods, for the economic and
environmental benefit of Northumberland and the North East Region.
Current Situation
A number of key freight routes exist in South East Northumberland, These include the link
from Benton Junction to Blyth, Bedlington Ashington and Woodhorn, the link from
Bedlington to Morpeth and links to open cast mining sites north of Ashington. The route
from Benton Junction to Ashington and also from Bedlington to Morpeth have been the
subject of proposals for the re- instatement of passenger services supported by the County
Council. This is covered in more detail later in this document.
Extensive freight services also operate on the East Coast Man line, and the Tyne Valley
line. Traffic includes heavy coal trains, minerals, steel products and multi modal
containers. The majority of freight that starts in Northumberland originates from South East
Northumberland, including open cast coal, Blyth port traffic, and traffic relating to the Alcan
smelter.
Northumberland County Council is a member of the Tyne and Wear freight partnership,
which promotes the greater use of rail for freight in the North East region.
Future Developments
The County Council will promote the greater use of rail freight in Northumberland, and will
promote further potential freight terminal sites. The authority will continue to promote the
expansion of rail freight through the Tyne and Wear Freight Partnership. The County
Council considers rail freight to have great role to play in reducing traffic congestion and
carbon.
Key Action Areas


Promote greater use of rail freight in Northumberland to reduce traffic congestion
and carbon levels
Continue to support the greater use of rail freight through the Tyne and Wear freight
partnership.
59
6.2
User Confidence
Safer Travel
Objective: To improve the actual and perceived safety of rail travel throughout the whole
journey.
Current Situation
Many people won’t even consider using public transport because of fears for their personal
security. This is a particular concern for women, older people and ethnic minorities. The
part of the journey spent waiting, and walking to or from the station often causes the most
fear. Behaviour of young people is also felt to be intimidating or threatening by some
passengers. Familiarity with the area and mode of travel can influence feelings of security
with local residents and those who use rail services frequently feeling more secure than
visitors to the area and infrequent users. The actual and perceived security needs to be
improved to re-assure existing rail users and encourage people to use public transport.
Studies have demonstrated that measures to improve personal safety could encourage the
increased use of public transport by 10%.
Future Developments
It is important that rail operators work to improve perceived and actual personal security.
Good personal security is made up of many elements. This includes well designed access
to rail stations, clean and graffiti free infrastructure, CCTV at the majority of rail stations
and on trains, staff presence on and around the rail network, lighting and signage as well
as telephone help points. A strategic approach with all partners needs to be developed to
deliver improvements to perceived and actual security. Maximum benefit will be gained by
tackling problems in partnership with train operators, the local Police/British Transport
Police, the Council and Community Safety Partnership on a ‘whole journey’ basis.
Key Action Areas







Installation of more CCTV at rail stations
Improved station lighting
Graffiti and litter free stations
Encourage partnership working between rail operators and the Community Safety
Partnership
Safe access routes to rail stations
Improving the behaviour of young people on trains
Installation of more CCTV on trains
60
Information
Objective: To ensure that users and potential rail users have access to information that is
accurate, easy to understand and use and available at all stages of their journey.
Current Situation
Whilst a wide range of public transport information is provided, it is of inconsistent quality,
not always available and may not always provide the information that is needed. The
overall impression of rail information is good, but there is room for major improvement in
certain areas, although rail operators have a good record of producing paper timetables for
their services.
Future Developments
Passengers have different information needs at different stages of their journey. They
need high quality, user focused information for use before the journey, at the railway
station, on the train and at point of connection/destination. Passengers need to know
whether their proposed journey is possible by public transport. Rail network route maps
need to be available in both printed and web-based interactive format. Partnership
working with rail operators, tourist attractions and parish councils would help facilitate
distribution of timetables to libraries and information centres as well as shops, post offices
and attractions. Community Rail Partnerships and rail user groups can play an important
role in the production and distribution of local rail information.
Passengers need re-assurance that their particular journey is operating on time. The
basic requirement at stations is clear and up to date timetable boards. Additional timetable
boards will be restricted to key stations. Electronic real time passenger information
displays should be provided at key stations. Mobile phone applications with access to the
‘National Rail’ real time arrival/departure boards are to be encouraged. The installation of
long line PA systems at all Northumberland stations should be a priority in the medium
term.
At key rail stations passengers appreciate the presence of front line staff for ticketing and
information purposes. Front line staff play a key role in the provision of information. For
this reason key rail stations in Northumberland should continue to be staffed. In some
cases such as Morpeth for example, the extension of staffing hours should be considered.
On-train displays can be used to inform passengers of the approaching train, but this tends
to be restricted to LDHS at present, although all local trains operating in Northumberland
are fitted with public address systems. If local trains are to be refurbished in the future, the
installation of DDA compliant display screens should be a priority.
The rail industry at times has a poor record when there are unexpected disruptions to
services due to reasons such as signalling faults. When services are disrupted, it is the
duty of Network Rail and train operators to inform passengers as soon as possible of the
reasons for any delays, the possible duration, and any plans to resolve the problem. It is
not acceptable to leave passengers stranded on trains or stations for long periods of time
with no information. The needs of rail passengers must be included in any review of
road/pedestrian signage to signage at key locations.
61
Key Action Areas
The key areas that need to be developed include:









Production of a ‘network map and guide’ in partnership with local bus and rail
operators;
Develop a web-based interactive public transport map;
Develop applications to distribute information via the internet and mobile phones;
Concise, clear information at stations at the very least to include timetable display
boards, with additional boards at key stations
Provisions of electronic information displays at key stations
Installation of electronic displays on local trains in the longer term
Installation of long line PA at all Northumberland stations in the medium term
Retain staffing at key Northumberland stations
Encourage train operators and Network Rail to inform passengers as soon as
possible of unplanned service disruptions, and actions to resolve these.
62
Fares and Ticketing
Objective: To provide a broad range of appropriately priced and flexible tickets.
Current Situation
The provision of attractive and affordable ticketing is essential to further growing the
market for rail travel. The County Council has little control at present over rail ticketing.
Rail ticketing tends to be structured according to demand, particularly in relation to LDHS,
with peak journeys from Northumberland into major cities such as London being
particularly expensive. Bargain fares are available off peak, with the cheapest deals
available the further tickets are booked in advance. Certain fares are regulated by the
government, such as save returns. Discounts are also available for holders of certain rail
cards, such as family and young person’s rail cards.
As the demand for train travel increases, the number of cheaper fares will decline. The
County Council welcomes the increased use of rail travel, which advances the sustainable
travel agenda, particularly in reducing carbon. However the authority is concerned over the
above inflation increases in regulated rail fares in recent years, and further planned
increases. The authority would rather see increases in rail capacity, rather than the pricing
off of excess demand. In the longer term the solution is to reduce the cost of running the
rail network, which is being addressed by the McNulty Review discussed earlier.
In Northumberland, Berwick, Alnmouth, Morpeth and Hexham are staffed stations. The
County Council is determined that these ticket offices remained staffed in the future, and
staffing should in fact be increased. Stations should not be de-staffed as part of cost
cutting exercises in the rail industry. The provision of self service ticket machines as
proposed at Prudhoe is to be welcomed, but self service machines should not be seen as
a substitute for station staffing.
Future Developments
The County Council would like to see the further extension of multi modal ticketing to train
services in Northumberland. At present the only multi modal ticketing system available in
Northumberland is the PlusBus network, which is only available from Alnmouth, Prudhoe
and Hexham stations. With the spread out of Smart Card ticketing under the NESTI
scheme, the authority has a long term aspiration to extend this scheme to rail transport. If
the North East authorities become involved in franchising local rail services in the future as
discussed earlier, this could widen the potential to spread multi modal ticketing.
With the roll out of Smart Card ticketing systems in Northumberland, the County Council
would like to see concessionary fares becoming available on trains within the county and
beyond. This must be seen as a highly desirable medium to long term aspiration.
Key Action Areas




Pursue Northumberland interests in the North East Regional Smart Card
consortium
Extend the use of multi modal ticketing to more rail services
Encourage the extension of ‘Plus Bus’ in Northumberland to improve interchange
between bus and rail services
Campaign against above inflation rail fare rises
63




Work with the rail industry to help public understanding of the rail ticketing system
Support the case for staffing to remain at key rail stations in Northumberland, with
extended opening hours.
Support the Case for more self ticket machines at unstaffed stations, or at staffed
stations outside of booking office hours.
Support long term aspirations to extend concessionary fares to rail services
64
Customer Care
Objective: To create a good public transport journey experience.
Current Situation
Public transport services need to reflect the high standards of customer care that have
been developed, and people now expect, in other service sectors. People need to know
how to complain when they are not happy about the service they have received. Local rail
operators and the Council also need to know what people are not happy about so that
improvements can be made.
Future Developments
Customer care training is seen as important for all frontline staff. The County Council will
work with train operating companies through local stakeholder meetings to improve
customer care in the rail industry.
Travel information also needs to be made available at appropriate locations where
customers wish to find it. The current arrangements for providing travel advice will be
investigate to identify where this can be extended through appropriate training and
support. The continuation of staffing at key rail stations in Northumberland is a key part of
customer care. Rail passengers appreciate the availability of front line staff.
Key Action Areas




Work with the rail industry to develop a standard approach to customer care.
Develop customer care proposals with rail operators, including better staff training
Make customer care a priority at local authority rail stakeholder meetings
Develop priorities for customer care with rail user groups
65
6.3
Infrastructure
Objective: To develop good quality rail infrastructure to aid the social and economic
development of Northumberland.
Railway Stations
Current Situation
A matrix of station facilities at Northumberland stations on the East Coast and Tyne Valley
rail lines is provided below. Northumberland County Council would like to see the
following minimum good quality facilities and conditions adequate for the relevant demand:

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Waiting Room
Shelter/canopy
Seats
Safe conditions
Lighting
CCTV
Passenger help point
Disabled Access to station facilities and trains (fully DDA compliant)
Timetable Posters
Access between platforms
Information posters
Customer Information Screen
Cycle Parking
Car Parking (including Disabled Spaces)
Safe and attractive access for Pedestrians
Signing to Station for pedestrians, cyclists and cars
Vegetation Control
No broken glass
Graffiti free
Litter free
In addition and where appropriate, in terms of numbers of passengers and trains and cost
effectiveness, the provision of the following facilities will also be considered:









Public Address System
Ticket Office or Self Service Ticket Machine
Toilets
Public Telephone
Designated Drop-Off and Pick Up Area
Car Park Lighting and Security
Bus and Taxi Information
Secure Cycle Lockers
Platform number and signing
66
Long Line Personal Address System
CIS screen
Timetable Posters
Bus Information
Taxi Information
Signing for facilities
Help Point
Information Posters
Platform Number & Signing
Ticket Office
Waiting Room
Shelter / Canopy
Seats
Toilets
Access between platforms
Access points open/ available for use
Public Telephone
Cycle Parking
Car Parking
CCTV
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67
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Litter free
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Graffiti free
Station Facilities
No broken glass
Passenger Information
Safe Conditions
DDA
Vegetation Control
Signing
Lighting
Disabled Access (fully DDA Compliant)
Berwick
Chathill
Alnmouth
Acklington
Widdrington
Pegswood
Morpeth
Cramlington
Immediate approach
Station
From Highway Network
East Coast Mail Line Station Matrix
Safety
Cleaning &
Maintenance
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Disabled Access (fully DDA Compliant)
Long Line Personal Address System
CIS screen
Timetable Posters
Bus Information
Taxi Information
Signing for facilities
Help Point
Information Posters
Platform Number & Signing
Ticket Office
Waiting Room
Shelter / Canopy
Seats
Toilets
Access between platforms
Access points open/ available for use
Public Telephone
Cycle Parking
Car Parking
CCTV
Lighting
Vegetation Control
Safe Conditions
No broken glass
Graffiti free
Litter free
Haltwhistle
Bardon Mill
Haydon
Bridge
Hexham
Riding Mill
Corbridge
Stocksfield
Prudhoe
Wylam
Immediate approach
Station
From Highway Network
Tyne Valley Station Matrix
Signing
DDA
Passenger Information
Station Facilities
68
Safety
Cleaning &
Maintenance
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Future Developments
The aim of the Northumberland rail strategy is to bring all rail stations up to the minimum
standards listed above. Station improvements may be funded by the LTP, rail industry
finance, the DfT or other sources of external funding such as developer contributions.
With increasing traffic on rail services in Northumberland, car parking has become a
particular problem at a number of stations. The authority also places a priority on
accessibility with a number of schemes implemented or planned which will meet this aim.
Partnership working with TOCs, Network Rail and the DfT are vital for station improvement
projects. Current projects planned or in progress are:

Morpeth - Extension of existing station car park, and construction of a new 92 space
car park. Installation of DDA level access lifts from the DfT ‘Access for All’ fund.
Upgraded waiting facilities, long line PA, electronic information screens, and
refurbished subway, to be financed as part of the Network Rail National Station
Improvement programme.
Alnmouth - Installation of DDA level access lifts from the DfT ‘Access for All’ fund.
Upgraded waiting facilities, long line PA, electronic information screens, and cycle
parking, to be financed as part of the Network Rail National Station Improvement
programme.
Cramlington - Extension of existing car park, and improved pedestrian access.
Hexham - An application for £350,000 has been made to the DfT’s ‘Level Access’
fund to provide a new car park and level access to the Eastbound platform. The
results of this application are awaited in the autumn of 2011



In addition there are aspirations for the following for which funding is still being sought:


Additional car parking at Berwick, with existing facilities outstripping demand
DDA level access at Corbridge
Now that surveys covering station facilities at all stations in Northumberland have been
completed, a comprehensive list of priorities can be developed for all Northumberland
stations, which can be developed into a programme for coming years, rather than the
rather fragmented approach which has been followed in the past.
New rail stations may be proposed on existing passenger lines, or on freight only routes
such as the ABT network.
At present the County Council is supporting proposals for the re-opening of Belford station
on the ECML. Belford station site is located south of Berwick around one and a half miles
east of Belford village. The previous station on the site closed in 1969.
69
The potential for reopening resulted from the use of Belford sidings for reversing
terminating trains from the Newcastle to Chathill local service. The construction of a single
platform is proposed so that the Chathill train can be boarded while stabled in Belford
sidings.
There is great potential for traffic from work/education related trips into Newcastle and
tourist/ leisure related trips, particularly in the summer months. A Network Rail Grip 1/2
Study has already been completed, and the ‘Project Inception Report’ has already been
approved by the DfT. The next stage is the completion of a Network Rail GRIP 4 study,
preparations for which are already advanced. It is possible the station could be open by
the summer of 2013, making it the first new station to be opened in the North East since
Yarm in 1996.
Key Action Areas



Continue to promote rail station facilities in Northumberland as part of a long term
programme
Continue to seek internal and external funding for rail station upgrades
Promote the opening of new stations where justified, including the re-opening of
Belford station
70
Route Upgrades
Objective: Continue to seek the upgrading of rail route infrastructure for the social and
economic development of Northumberland
Current Situation
Route upgrades may take the form of upgrades to track and signalling on existing
passenger or freight routes, where existing traffic use remains the same, or major
upgrades such as the reopening of the Ashington Blyth and Tyne (ABT) freight network to
passenger traffic.
Future Developments
Ashington Blyth and Tyne (ABT)
In South East Northumberland a network of freight lines exist which link the ECML with
Blyth, Bedlington, and Ashington. This network is often referred to as Ashington Blyth and
Tyne. These lines closed to passengers in 1964. Proposals have existed for a number of
years to re-open these lines to passengers to aid economic regeneration in South East
Northumberland.
The proposal is for an hourly train service, with half hourly in the peaks, to link Newcastle
with Blyth, Bedlington, Ashington, and possibly Woodhorn. The line would provide
competitive commuting times from South East Northumberland into Newcastle. An
interchange would be available with the Tyne and Wear Metro at Northumberland Park. An
outline of the route may be seen on the map on page seven of this document.
At present consultants have completed a Demand Study for the County Council which is
being evaluated before submission to the DfT. If the results of study are approved by the
DfT, further Network Rail GRIP studies would then follow. The proposed reopening is part
of the South East Northumberland Public Transport Corridor study, which includes
proposals for other public transport improvements including buses, and also walking and
cycling.
While finance is not available for the project at the present time, the proposal has long
term potential for playing a major role in the regeneration of South East Northumberland,
with finance being available once the planning stage is over.
East Coast Mainline
The Northern Route Utilisation Strategy (RUS) published October 2010 by Network Rail
proposes signalling and electrification power upgrades to the ECML between Newcastle
and Edinburgh. These proposals should increase route capacity, enabling more
passengers and freight to be carried. The County Council would support the earliest
implementation for these proposals for the benefit of Northumberland.
71
Tyne Valley Line
There have been proposals to upgrade the signalling on the Tyne Valley line for a number
of years, to reduce journey times on the line, increase line capacity and reduce costs.
There are no proposals in the Northern RUS to carry out his work in the near future. The
County Council would like to see this work brought forward as soon as possible to aid the
development of the route.
Key Action Areas


Work with Network Rail, TOCs and the DfT to upgrade rail routes in
Northumberland
Develop the project for reopening the Ashington, Blyth and Tyne rail network
72
Rolling Stock
Objective: To support the provision of a modern rolling stock fleet in Northumberland, with
adequate capacity for future passenger demand.
Current Situation
Local Services
The age of the local train rolling stock fleet is a matter for concern, with the majority of fleet
over twenty years old. At present there are no plans for an early replacement. If the North
East region were to obtain franchising powers as described earlier, there may be a greater
capability for the region to bid for replacement rolling stock.
The number of passengers using local services continues to increase, as can be seen in
the earlier section on rail trends. The lack of additional stock for North East local services
is a particular problem, with only around fifteen extra vehicles allocated to the region in the
DfTs rolling stock plans.
Long Distance High Speed Services
The average age of LDHS high speed stock varies, with electric trains on the east coast
main line around twenty years old, diesel High Speed Train sets over thirty years old, and
‘Voyager Trains’ used on cross country services at around ten years old.
Future Developments
Inter City Express Project
The DfT plan to introduce a new design of high speed train over the next fifteen years, to
replace the existing High Speed Train diesel feet on the ECML. These trains will be
available in electric and bi mode form, the bi mode version will be capable of operating on
diesel and electric power, and will have a great passenger carrying capacity.
The County Council welcomes the early introduction of these trains to increase passenger
capacity on the ECML and the reduced carbon emissions from the reduction in diesel train
use on electrified sections of line.
Refurbishment of Voyager Trains
The DfT is proposing a programme of refurbishment for these diesel trains, which includes
an additional coach being added to each train. The work will also include the conversion to
bi mode operation, which will give the capability of operating on electric traction when
working on electrified routes. This will reduce journey times, reduce operating costs and
reduce levels of carbon. These trains operate on the cross country rail network, which
provide links to Scotland, the West Midlands and the South Coast.
73
Key Action Areas



Support the case for renewal of the local train service rolling stock fleet, including
the provision of additional capacity to meet rising passenger demand
Support the introduction of the Inter City Express train fleet in Northumberland, to
reduce journey times and provide extra passenger capacity
Support refurbishment of the ‘Voyager’ train fleet to provide additional passenger
capacity, reduced journey times and reductions in carbon.
74
7.
Funding the Strategy - Rail
7. 1 Revenue Implications
The County Council provides no revenue support for rail services. However this could
change if the authority acquired rail franchising powers. However it is essential that any
block grants sent from the DfT are ring fenced and are not part of the general County
Council revenue streams.
7.2 Capital Implications
The County Council has number of rail capital improvements through the Local Transport
Plan, particularly rail stations. As the LTP as a resource becomes increasingly constrained
in the current economic climate alternative sources of funding will become more important.
However the authority has a good record of bidding for external funding, with funding
secured from the following sources in the last three years.




Leader Coast and Lowland (£150,000 towards Alnmouth station car park)
Regional funding allocation (£1.5 million towards rail improvements)
DfT Access for All fund (£45,000 for Stocksfield railway station)
Developer funding
Even in the current economic climate external funding can still enable important capital rail
projects to proceed.
Key Action Areas



Maintain officer expertise and capability to make external funding bids
Follow up all opportunities to bid for external funding
Maintain LTP investment in Capital Rail projects
75
8. Conclusion
A major reason for publishing the Public Transport Strategy is to promote integration
between transport modes.
The strategies above have identified several ways in which interchange between bus and
rail, or bus to bus or rail to rail, can be improved



Information and publicity – timetable information that not only shows individual
services but connections as well
Infrastructure and interchange – quality interchanges with appropriate facilities
where people can change and, where necessary, wait
Ticketing – Smartcard technology to allow seamless transfer without having to pay
again
The Public Transport Strategy is a living document. The ideas and proposals set out in it
should be regarded as a point of departure for all stakeholders to give their views. We
want the document to be shaped by those who read it.
All comments on this strategy should be addressed to:
Mike Scott
Head of Strategic Transport
Northumberland County Council
County Hall
Morpeth
Northumberland
NE61 2EF
Mike.Scott@northumberland.gov.uk
76
Appendix A : Principal bus routes in Northumberland
X4
X5 X6
X10 X11
X13
X14 X15
X18
X20
X21
X22
X77 X78
X79
A2
B2
B6
H1 H2
M3
1 1A
2 2A
10
10 11
11
17
35
43
52
53 53A
57 57A
60
67
74
100
111
131
144
235
253
267
308
309
401
411
419
430
434
464
470
472
473
477
501
505
508
518
Blyth – Newcastle via Seaton Delaval, Seghill, Quorum Business Park, South Gosforth ....... Arriva
Blyth – Newcastle via Cowpen, Bebside, Cramlington, Quorum Business Park, S Gosforth . Arriva
Blyth – Newcastle via Newsham Farm, Cramlington, Gosforth .............................................. Arriva
Blyth – Newcastle via South Beach, Cramlington, Beacon Hill, Gosforth ............................... Arriva
Pegswood, Morpeth – Newcastle via Hepscott Park, Stannington, Wideopen, Gosforth ....... Arriva
Ashington – Newcastle via Stakeford, Guide Post, Morpeth................................................... Arriva
Ashington – Newcastle via College, Spine Road .................................................................... Arriva
Newbiggin – Newcastle via Wansbeck Hospital, Ashington, Bedlington Station .................... Arriva
North Seaton – Newcastle via Ashington, Guide Post, Bedlington, Nedderton ...................... Arriva
Newcastle – Ponteland, Darras Hal ......................................................................... Stagecoach NE
Newcastle – Ponteland (Thornhill Road, Kirkley Hall).............................................. Stagecoach NE
Ashington (North Seaton - Fallowfield) ................................................................. Phoenix Coaches
Berwick (Railway station – Prior Park) ................................................................. Perryman’s Buses
Berwick (Ramparts – Highfield Estate – Spittal, Highcliffe).................................. Perryman’s Buses
Hartley Square, Holywell Village – Cramlington via Seaton Sluice, E CramlingtonPhoenix Coaches
Morpeth (Northgate, Lancaster Park, Bus Station, Stobhillgate) ............................. Astley Coaches
Blyth – Amble via Ashington, Wansbeck Hosp, Widdrington; also Newbiggin, Cresswell ...... Arriva
Blyth – Morpeth (Kirkhill) via Bedlington, Red House Farm, Guide Post ................................ Arriva
Newcastle – Hexham via MetroCentre, Prudhoe, Corbridge .................................... Go North East
Blyth – Newcastle via Newsham Farm, Newsham, Cramlington, Wideopen, Gosforth .......... Arriva
Newcastle – Low Prudhoe via Scotswood or MetroCentre, Crawcrook, Prudhoe .... Go North East
Cramlington – Whitley Bay via Killingworth, Benton, Wallsend, North Shields ......... Go North East
Morpeth – Newbiggin via Ashington ....................................................................................... Arriva
Morpeth – Newcastle via East Hartford, Cramlington, Wideopen, Gosforth ........................... Arriva
Ashington – Freeman Hospital via Guide Post, Bedlington, Cramlington, Four Lane Ends .... Arriva
Whitley Bay – Blyth via Shiremoor, Killingworth, Cramlington, High Pit, Newsham ................ Arriva
Cramlington – North Shields via High Pit, Seghill, Seaton Delaval, Whitley Bay .................... Arriva
Berwick - Galashiels “Rail Link” via Duns, Melrose................................................................... First
Berwick – Galashiels via Norham, Cornhill, Coldstream, Kelso, Melrose ........... Perryman’s Buses
Newcastle – Hexham via Airport, Ponteland, Stamfordham, Matfen ........................ Go North East
Ashington College – Kirkley Hall College via Newcastle Airport ............................................. Arriva
Prudhoe (Castlefields – Moor Road – Drawback – West Wylam) .............................. Go North East
Edinburgh – Newcastle via Galashiels, Otterburn........................................... Munro’s of Jedburgh
Morpeth – Thropton via Rothbury ........................................................................................... Arriva
Berwick – St Abbs via Eyemouth ........................................................................ Perryman’s Buses
Berwick – Edinburgh via Eyemouth, Dunbar, Haddington .................................. Perryman’s Buses
Berwick – Wooler via Ford, Branxton, Milfield.......................Glen Valley Tours, Perryman’s Buses
Blyth – Newcastle via Seaton Sluice, Whitley Bay, North Tyneside Hospital.......................... Arriva
Blyth – Newcastle via Seaton Sluice, Whitley Bay, Silverlink ................................... Go North East
Alnwick – Bamburgh via Longhoughton, Howick, Beadnell, Seahouses ........................ Travelsure
Beadnell – Berwick via Seahouses, Bamburgh, Belford ................................................. Travelsure
Morpeth – Cambo, Scots Gap ................................................................................................. Arriva
North Seaton Colliery – Linton via Ashington ......................................................................... Arriva
Ashington – Blyth via Cambois, North Blyth, Bedlington......................................................... Arriva
Berwick – Wooler via Scremerston, Lowick ..........................Glen Valley Tours, Perryman’s Buses
Alnwick – Wooler via Chillingham, Chatton ...................................... Glen Valley Tours, Travelsure
Alnwick (Barresdale) – Amble via Shilbottle, Warkworth ................................................ Travelsure
Alnwick – Wooler via Whittingham, Glanton, Powburn, Wooperton .....................Glen Valley Tours
Berwick – Holy Island .......................................................................................... Perryman’s Buses
Newcastle – Berwick via Morpeth, Alnwick, Craster, Seahouses, Bamburgh ......................... Arriva
Newcastle – Berwick via Morpeth, Alnwick, Belford.................................Arriva, Perryman’s Buses
Gateshead and Newcastle – Rothbury via Newcastle, Belsay, Wallington (summer) ............ Arriva
Newcastle – Alnwick via Morpeth, Amble, Warkworth, Alnmouth ........................................... Arriva
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Whittonstall – Hexham via Hedley, Stocksfield .........................................................Howard Snaith
Nenthead – Carlisle via Alston, Brampton ..................................... Wright Bros, Telford’s Coaches
Hexham – Newbrough via High School, Newbrough ................................................ Go North East
Hexham (Highford Park) – Newcastle via Ovington, Wylam, Heddon ...................... Go North East
Newcastle – Carlisle via Hexham, Haltwhistle ............................................ Arriva, Stagecoach NW
Ovington – Prudhoe via Wylam, Crawcrook ............................................................. Go North East
Hexham – Allenheads via Allendale Town................................................................ Go North East
Consett – Hexham via Shotley Bridge, Slaley .......................................................... Go North East
Bamburgh – Newcastle and MetroCentre via Seahouses, Alnwick ................................ Travelsure
Kelso – Newcastle via Coldstream, Wooler .........................................................Glen Valley Tours
Gateshead and Newcastle – Kielder via Bellingham (summer) .............................................. Arriva
Consett – Townfield via Edmundbyers, Blanchland ................................. Weardale Motor Services
Otterburn – Newcastle via Knowesgate, Belsay, Ponteland .....................................Howard Snaith
Alwinton – Alnwick via Rothbury, Longframlington, Swarland ...............................Rothbury Motors
Otterburn – Morpeth via Netherwitton .......................................................................Howard Snaith
Blyth – Cowpen via Edendale Avenue .......................................................................Phoenix Taxis
Morpeth – Hexham via Belsay, Matfen, Corbridge ................................................................. Arriva
Hexham – Kielder via Acomb, Wark, Bellingham.................. Howard Snaith, Tyne Valley Coaches
Hexham – Colwell via Acomb, Gunnerton ................................................................Howard Snaith
Byrness – Hexham via Otterburn, Ridsdale, Chollerton............................................Howard Snaith
Newcastle – Keswick via Hexham, Alston, Penrith (summer)....................................... Wright Bros
Alston – Hexham via Nenthead, Carrshield .................................................................. Wright Bros
HADRIAN’S WALL BUS: Newcastle – Bowness-on-Solway ............ Classic Coaches, Alba Travel
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