What Is Proposed?

Bus / Rail Integration can be split into 3 separate aspects: 1) Physical integration, 2) Fares integration and 3) Timetable integration. For Physical Integration, SENRUG wants to see buses pulling in to the station turning circles at Morpeth, Cramlington and the new stations on the Northumberland Line. SENRUG’s proposals for Fares Integration are detailed separately on our simpler Fares page. Finally, in cases where bus services are infrequent (less than every 30 minutes) bus timetables should be adjusted to make sensible connections with train arrivals and departures.

Why?

Passengers wishing to travel by public transport should be able to get to the station easily, without having to hire a taxi, be dropped off and / or picked up, or walk a long way from the nearest bus stop, possibly with heavy luggage or in bad weather. Integrating bus and train travel in this way will ease pressures on overloaded station car parks and generate more passengers for both bus and train companies. Integrated ticketing would increase use of both bus and train particularly for passengers who can’t be sure if they will return at a time a suitable train is running. This is particular important given the paucity of local rail services in the evening. It would then be possible to travel to Newcastle by train and return by bus.

SENRUG believes the more public transport is integrated, the more it becomes a viable option for journeys, and passenger numbers and hence revenue will increase on both trains and buses where better integration takes place.

How?

At Morpeth, either of bus 2 or 43 should travel along Coopies Lane and serve the station, rather than both buses following each other round the Stobhill estate as happens at present. Airport bus 777 should also be extended from the Town Centre to the station turning circle.

At Cramlington, all the buses along Crow Hall Lane (numbers 43, 57 and 58) should serve the station turning circle. Additionally, buses from the south that terminate at Cramlington and wait at the Newlyn Drive roundabout before starting their returning journey should be extended on to the station turning circle, using the idle time currently spent waiting at the roundabout. A new half-hourly bus service connecting the station with Dudley Lane shops, the hospital and Seaton Delaval should be introduced with a possible route: East Hartford – Nelson Village – Cramlington Station Turning Circle – Cramlington Dudley Lane Shops – Cramlington Specialist A&E Hospital – Seaton Delaval Station – Seaton Delaval Hall – Seaton Delaval Village. To better facilitate these bus improvements, the next time the A1171 / A1172 / Station Road roundabout is upgraded, a bus only access slip road should be created into the station turning circle.

At Ashington, a new exit should be built connecting thee station to Station Road and making it much closer to the bus station. This should be done as part of the work to extend the Northumberland Line to Newbiggin, which will require construction of a new platform on the southbound line.

The bus routes that pass close by to Seaton Delaval and Newsham stations should also be diverted into the station bus lay-bys, and all the local bus routes passing through the Earsdon Road / New York Road roundabout should make the short diversion into Northumberland Park station, making it a true bus / rail interchange.

Manors Network Rail and Metro stations should be fully integrated – see our plans for the Redevelopment of Manors.

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