OPERATIONS PROFILE
as at 8th June 2009
Stagecoach in Sunderland operate a PVR of 80, split 85% (68) easyACCESS and 15% (12) high floor. The PVR of 80 is covered by a network of 18 services which stretches from South Bents in the North East and Downhill in the North West to Doxford Park in the South West and Grangetown in the South East, covering almost all districts of the City.
Fleet
Profile
The Stagecoach in Sunderland fleet comprises 93 vehicles, 85% (79) of which are easyACCESS and 15% (14) high floor. The total of 93 is made up of 45 MAN saloons, 14 Darts, 25 Dart SLFs and nine Enviro 200 Darts. All of the Sunderland fleet have received Stagecoach in Sunderland livery.
In addition, Sunderland have three Driver Training Vehicles; one Volvo B10M bus
(20272), one Volvo B10B bus (21042) and one Volvo B10M coach (52136).
MANs
22072-22082, Dart SLFs 35155-63/72/73 and Enviro 200s 39724-39732 were delivered complete with the new
style interior. None of the rest of
the Sunderland fleet have been treated to a full refurbishment, though the
majority have received retrim (new blue moquette on old bench seats), comprising 22172/96, 22214/15, 22453/62/64/67/86-91/94/95,
22664/66/72/73/75, 22727/29-33/35/36, 32631, 32777-82/87-90, 33118/20-28, 33484,
33826/27/29.
A number of the MAN easyACCESS saloons carry megarear advertisements: 22490
& 22728 carry Dayrider megarears, 22495 & 22734 have the new “pants” Megarider megarear (22487
& 22734 have both lost their “take any bus” Megarider megarears) and
22073 wears Superoute megarears. 22732
has long since lost its short-lived full offside contra-vision advert for
Virgin media and 22730 lost it's Superoute megarear in early 2009 while 22072
lost the Dayrider megarear during Spring 2009.
All
of the 56-plate SLF Darts and the new Enviro 200s have scrolling orange
Sentence Case digital destination displays while the MANs and
Alexander ALX200 bodied SLF Darts all have yellow non-scrolling Sentence Case
digital destination blinds. The B10Ms and Darts 32773/77-82/86-90 all have
yellow UPPERCASE digital destination blinds. Darts 32631/33 are the only
vehicles at Sunderland to have conventional
yellow roller blinds.
Meet
the Fleet
22072 22073 22074 22075 22076 22077 22078 22079 22080 22081 22082 22172 22190 22196 22214 22215 22453 22462 22463 22464 22467 22468 22486 22487 22488 22489 22490 22491 22494 22495 22664 22666 22672 22673 22675 22727 22728 22729 22730 22731 22732 22733 22734 22735 22736 33118 33120 33121 33122 33123 33124 33125 33126 33127 33128 33484 33826 33827 33829 35155 35156 35157 35158 35159 35160 35161 35162 35163 35172 35173 39724 39725 39726 39727 39728 39729 39730 39731 39732
high floor
32631 32633 32773 32777 32778 32779 32780 32781 32782 32786 32787 32788 32789 32790
A bit of Analysis
Average fleet age: 8.2 years
| Total Fleet | |
high floor | |
| Spares overall | 14.0%
(13/93) |
13.9%
(11/79) |
14.3%
(2/14) |
| Spares on PVR | 16.3%
(13/80) |
16.2%
(11/68) |
16.7%
(2/12) |
Routes
X1 City Centre – Doxford International
Note: Service X1 operates peak times only
3 Farringdon, Atlantis Road – City Centre – Hylton Castle
via Plains Farm & Cheadle Road
4 Doxford Park – East Herrington – City Centre – Downhill Estate
via Mill Hill, Durham Road, Fawcett Street, Southwick, Marley Pots and Red House South
5 Doxford Park – City Centre – Docks
via Farringdon, Gilley Law, Thorney Close, High Barnes, Royal Hospital and University
5A Doxford Park – City Centre – Docks
via Farringdon, Gilley Law, Thorney Close, High Barnes, Royal Hospital and University
7 Witherwack – City Centre
via Newcastle Road
8 South Hylton – City Centre
via Helmsdale Road and Hylton Road
10 Pennywell, Quarry View – City Centre – Grangetown
via Fordfield Road, Royal Hospital, Eye Infirmary and Hill View Estate
11 Pennywell, Quarry View – City Centre – Grangetown
via St.Lukes Cross and Corporation Road
12 City Centre – Silksworth – City Centre
via Silksworth Lane and Vicarage Farm
13 Doxford Park – City Centre – Town End Farm
via Hall Farm, Farringdon, Gilley Law, Silksworth Lane, Southwick, North Hylton Road and Hylton Lane
16 Hastings Hill – City Centre – Red House Estate
via Grindon, Somerset Road, Royal Hospital, University, Southwick and Ramsgate Road
18 Grindon – Southwick – Seaburn – City Centre – Grangetown – Grindon
via Springwell, Barnes Park, Royal Hospital, Fulwell, South Bents Estate, Roker, Eye Infirmary and Thorney Close
19 Grindon – Grangetown – City Centre – Seaburn – Southwick – Grindon
via Thorney Close, Eye Infirmary, Roker, South Bents Estate, Fulwell, Royal Hospital, Barnes Park and Springwell
20 Pennywell, Prestbury Road – City Centre, Fawcett Street
via Hylton Road
23 Thorney Close – City Centre – Dene Estate
via Durham Road & Fulwell
126 Pennywell – City Centre – Downhill
via Royal Hospital and Witherwack
136 Pennywell – City Centre – Downhill
via Royal Hospital and Witherwack
| Service Number |
PVR | Operated by | Notes |
| X1 | 3* | MAN, Dart SLF, Dart | * Operates peak times Monday-Friday only, uses vehicles from other PVRs |
| 3 | 9 | MAN | |
| 4 | 10 | MAN, Dart SLF | |
| 5 | 3 | 2
x Dart, plus
1 x Dart SLF (from 351xx series) |
Operates Monday-Saturday daytime only |
| 5A |
Evenings & Sundays |
||
| 7 | 3 | Dart |
Evenings & Sundays |
| 8 | Operates Monday-Saturday daytime only | ||
| 10 | 10 | Dart SLF (mainly from 351xx series) | |
| 11 | |||
| 12 | 4 | Dart SLF, MAN, Dart |
Operates Monday-Saturday
daytime only |
| 13 | 11 | MAN, Dart SLF | |
| 16 | 10 | MAN, Dart SLF | |
| 18 | 3 | Dart | Operates Monday-Saturday daytime only |
| 19 | 3 | Dart | Operates Monday-Saturday daytime only |
| 20 | 6 | MAN, Dart SLF, Volvo B10M |
PVR = 5 after approx 2pm weekdays & all day Sat |
| 23 | 8 | Enviro 200, Volvo B10M, MAN, Dart SLF, Dart |
|
| 126 | 3** | Dart SLF (from 351xx series) | **
Operates evenings only, uses vehicles from other PVRs
|
| 136 | |||
| TOTAL | 80 |
A sample vehicle working for Stagecoach in Sunderland can be viewed HERE. This was the actual allocation from 6th June 2009.
Note: Stagecoach in South Shields services E1, E2 & E6 also operate to Sunderland City Centre, please see the Stagecoach in South Shields Operations Profile for more details.
Where
to go…
…for Sightings
77
of the 80 duties which operate on 14 of Sunderland’s 15 key daytime routes
pass the junction of Fawcett Street/Holmeside/Burdon Road/Borough Road in the
City Centre (corner of Wilkinsons/Yates/Museum/Jameson). Service 18 does
not pass the above junction, instead exiting the City Centre via John Street,
Athenaeum Street & Frederick Street. Diverting to John
Street/Athenaeum Street for Service 18 viewings will reduce the required time
for a complete allocation viewing to around 90 minutes.
Alternatives
to the City Centre are the site of the former Prospect Hotel on Durham Road
which is served by routes 3, 4, 18, 19 & 23 or The Green, Southwick which is
served by routes 3, 4, 13, 16, 18 & 19.
…for
Photos
In
the City Centre, outside of Joplings/Cineworld cinema is quieter (less hustle
and bustle) than the site described above, and provides good setting for photos
with all duties except those on routes 10, 11 & 12 passing the junction.
Given the positioning of the sun, vehicles entering John Street generally
provide better shots than those exiting from Fawcett Street, meaning that
vehicles on Services 19 & 20 are not captured well here.
Alternatively, the junction of Vine Place and Old Stockton Road provides a good
opportunity for photos of all South/West bound services out of the city, with
all duties except those on Services 18 & 19 passing the junction.
Outside
the City Centre, the junction of Allendale Road/Silksworth Road is particularly
good for easyACCESS duties – offering routes 3, 4 and 13 as well as mainly
high floor Dart operated route 5. Grindon (Gleneagles Road/Gartland Road
area) is also good, providing a mix of easyACCESS (route 16) and high floor
Darts (routes 18 & 19).
…for
Timetables
Stagecoach
in Sunderland no longer have a travelshop in the City, however the Nexus
Travelcentre in the Interchange normally has a decent stock, as does the
Sunderland Tourist Information Centre on Fawcett Street. The City Library
and Arts Centre (also on Fawcett Street) has a couple of random services, and
some of the branch libraries keep stocks of local route timetables.
The
Stagecoach North East head office at the Wheatsheaf has timetables for all
Stagecoach North East services in Tyne and Wear.
the
DEPOT
Please
remember – trespassing is illegal. Do not
enter any depot area without prior permission from Stagecoach.
All
of what is described here can been seen from outside the perimeter fence.
Stagecoach
in Sunderland is based at the Wheatsheaf Depot in Monkwearmouth, adjacent to the
Wheatsheaf Offices – head office of Stagecoach North East. The
Wheatsheaf depot is relatively modern and has extensive garage capabilities.
In addition, the Paintshop is housed within the depot.
Click
HERE
to view an aerial map of the depot and surrounding area (external link to
Google Maps).
layout
The
main entrance to the depot (“Gate 1”) is on Dundas Street. The
main service fleet park up at the front, with easyACCESS on the left, Volvo
B10M's in the middle and Darts on the right. Behind this area are the 17 workshops – if you’re lucky the doors may be open and if
so views of some of what’s inside may be seen from the sides of the depot. The
rear of the depot (“Gate 2”) is where the Driver Trainers are stored and is
also home to the Paintshop. Workshop 18 is used for rubbing down and 19 through 24 are
used in connection with repaints. Walking round all four sides of the depot gives a pretty good idea of what’s in there,
depending how many workshop gates are open. There is a free car park right outside the depot which is rarely full,
and there is usually plenty of on road parking (unless you choose a match day!).
how
to get there
from outside of Sunderland
Leave the
A19 at either the A690, A183 or A1231, then:-
- from A690/A183:
follow signs for City Centre and pick up signs for Wearmouth Bridge, then follow
‘from City Centre’ below for detailed directions.
- from A1231:
follow signs for Southwick then Wearmouth Bridge/Monkwearmouth, then follow
‘from Southwick’ below for detailed directions.
from City Centre
Walking:
Cross Wearmouth Bridge (Northbound) and head along North Bridge Street until you
come to the intersection with Dundas Street (opposite the Total garage).
Driving:
Heading North on Wearmouth Bridge/North Bridge Street, get into the right hand
lane. Straight over the first set of traffic lights, turn right into Dundas
Street just before the second set of lights (opposite the Total garage).
The depot is ahead on the left.
Busing:
Catch any bus which crosses Wearmouth Bridge from Fawcett Street (not services 5, 5A, 8, 10, 11,
12, or 20) and ask for the Wheatsheaf.
The best bus stop to alight is just across the road from the Wheatsheaf
Offices. Some services may stop
once across the roundabout, but it is only a short walk back to the depot.
To return to the City Centre, catch any bus from directly outside the
Wheatsheaf Offices.
from Newcastle Road
Walking:
You need to be on the left hand side of the road, walking towards the City
Centre. Pass Excel Bowling alley,
Reg Vardy and Roker Retail Park on the left.
Walk by the big roundabout and pass the Wheatsheaf pub on your left.
You will be facing the Wheatsheaf Offices and the depot (on the left).
Driving:
Heading towards the City Centre, pass Excel Bowl & Reg Vardy on the left.
Immediately after Reg Vardy turn left into Roker Retail Park (first left
off the roundabout) for easy parking. Walk
back to the roundabout, turn left, pass the Wheatsheaf pub and arrive at the
Wheatsheaf Offices and depot. Alternatively,
pass the entrance to the retail park and follow the road system round to the
left (you’ll see the depot on your right).
Before the traffic lights at Allied Carpets take a right hand turn (in
front of Frank’s Factory Flooring), turn right at the mini roundabout and park
up.
Busing:
Several services operated by Stagecoach and Go North East serve Newcastle Road
and pass the Wheatsheaf. All should
stop outside the Stagecoach offices.
from Southwick
Walking:
Head towards the City Centre/Seaburn/Monkwearmouth, pass the Stadium of Light.
You will reach a roundabout which you need to cross to reach the
Wheatsheaf Offices and depot which will be in front of you to the right.
Driving:
Head towards the City Centre/Seaburn/Monkwearmouth, pass the Stadium of Light.
You will reach the roundabout detailed above.
Again either park in the Roker Retail Park or at the back of the depot
(opposite Frank’s Factory Flooring).
Busing:
Stagecoach services 3 (towards Farringdon), 4/13 (towards Doxford Park) and 16
(towards Hastings Hill) all serve the Wheatsheaf, stopping outside the
Stagecoach offices, as do a number of services operated by Go North East.
©
Stagecoach North East Bus Depot 2005-2009.
If you wish to use any of the information or photographs from this site please
contact stagecoachbusdepot@hotmail.com
prior to their use.
This
is not an official Stagecoach website.