What are we consulting about?
This consultation was about planned changes to service 335 – this service (which is funded by Nexus using taxpayer funds) currently operates up to every 30 minutes Monday – Saturday daytime between Four Lane Ends – Cobalt.
Why are we considering changes to this service?
We are proposing to extend the service in response to feedback from customers.
What changes are we proposing?
We plan to introduce a new route/timetable for this service with the following key changes:
The route would be extended north of Four Lane Ends to serve Longbenton Estate, BT Call Centre, and the business parks at Balliol and Quorum.
Monday – Friday peak commuter trips would operate to a revised route in Cobalt Business Park with more convenient stopping locations. Buses would operate to/from Cobalt North (Village Hotel) serving Silver Fox Way/Quick Silver Way in both directions instead of the current one-way anti-clockwise loop.
The Monday – Friday daytime service would continue to operate up to every 30 minutes between Quorum – Cobalt.
The Saturday service would be reduced to every 60 minutes (currently every 30 minutes) between Longbenton Estate – Hadrian Park only, this reduction reflecting the lower volume of passengers using the service on a Saturday and also the very low level of demand for trips to/from Cobalt.
How will passengers be affected by these changes?
If introduced, the revised route for service 335 would provide:
- A new direct link (Monday – Friday) between Hadrian Park/Battle Hill/High Farm – Quorum Business Park
- A new direct link (Monday – Saturday) between Longbenton Estate – Benton ASDA
- Reinstate local links in Longbenton Estate between Stoneleigh Avenue (west) and shopping facilities on West Farm Avenue with buses serving currently un-used stops on Blackfriars Way
- Improved access to businesses and leisure facilities in Cobalt Business Park during Monday-Friday peak hours
- A revised timetable with arrival/departure times better linked with shift patterns at the business parks
Passengers who travel on a Saturday would see a frequency reduction (from every 30 minutes to every 60 minutes) and would also no longer have a direct link to/from Cobalt Business Park.
A map showing the proposed new 335 route and an indicative new timetable are attached below.
Subject to the feedback that we receive during this consultation, any changes to the service would be introduced with effect from March 2019.
Your views
We ran a public consultation on planned changes to the 335 from 6 August to 12 September 2018. We received 2 emails from members of the public and 2 from local business parks.
In summary:
• Local Business Parks were both supportive of the proposed new route/timetable
• One member of the public requested an earlier weekday trip to be added towards Four Lane Ends
• One member of the public suggested that the route should be revised to call near the Silverlink Retail park
Next steps
In light of the feedback received we have decided to introduce a new route/timetable for the 335 with effect from Monday 25 March 2019.
Key features of the proposed new timetable include:
• All trips will once again go to Benton ASDA
• Weekday service will now additionally go to Four Lane Ends – Quorum via Longbenton Estate
• Earlier weekday trip towards Four lane Ends/Quorum added
• Improved connections to/from local shops within Longbenton Estate
• Revised stopping arrangements in Cobalt during peak hours
• Saturday frequency reduced to hourly
We were unable to accommodate the request for this service to additionally go to Silverlink Retail Park. This was due to concerns about congestion in this area caused by long-term roadworks on the new Silverlink junction. However, once works have been completed, we will assess local traffic conditions to determine if a diversion of the route via Silverlink (between Hadrian Park – Cobalt) can be accommodated.
For the new 335 timetable/route effective from 25 March 2019 please click on the link below.
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the consultation for taking the time to provide us with their views.