Bus service could be rerouted for 'isolated' users

Arriva said passengers requested changing the X12 service to improve connectivity from Sedgefield to Fishburn

A bus service could be rerouted to serve residents who said they were left "isolated" after another was scrapped.

Arriva said passengers have requested changing the X12 service to improve connectivity from Sedgefield to Fishburn in County Durham.

Residents said they had felt cut off since the operator withdrew the service from Peterlee to Darlington last July.

It said changes to the X12 service could be introduced following a public consultation in October.

Sedgefield’s Conservative MP Paul Howell said Arriva’s announcement was “encouraging” but added "we must keep up the momentum".

The service currently stops in Middlesbrough, Stockton, Sedgefield, Durham, Chester-le-Street and Newcastle.

If approved, the revised X12 service would connect Fishburn to Durham City and also travel to the NetPark industrial site.

However, it would not operate via Teesside Park in Stockton but would travel via Tees Barrage and Thornaby Station.

The potential changes mean journey times for passengers boarding in Stockton or the Sedgefield area would slightly increase owing to the revised route, the Local Democracy Reporting Service understands.

Passengers boarding in other locations may see a slightly revised timetable, but likely no change to journey time.