My first job in haulage was with a company called GRAVER TRANSPORT hope St Oldham. I drove a thames trader & later 4 wheel and artic Bedford TKs Lots of Liverpool dock work and some scottish…it was unbelievable how quickly new lorries became heaps there.
Later joined BARBER TURNOCK TRANSPORT, Broomfield Drive Reddish, Stockport. They ran quite a few Albions, a new scammel handyman came, the blue eyed boy, Mick Mayo got that. Here maintenance was much better and everything I drove was roadworthy. I mostly drove a Leyland Beaver artic, 29mph flat out!! Leyland 600 engine, crash box & ratchet handbrake…It was all roping and sheeting work…did regular runs to Wolverhampton once a week, calling in the sunset cafe on the A449 at Penkridge for breakfast. After the M6 opened I could do Wolverhampton from Stockport in 4 hrs. I remember later driving Albion rievers, AEC Marshall & Mammoth Major, Mickey mouse Foden, (gardner, David brown, kirkstall), this was later when I drove for Townson Tanker transport in Oldham. After a spell at sea I went back on hgvs & did a night trunk for carryfast, Heathrow to Dewsbury & back every night…so tiring!!! was glad to leave that behind for a couple of years with Christian Salveson (good employer, good equipment) again night trunk, doddle of a job
Hi Skipper Chris and welcome to t/net.When did you work for Townsons? I worked their from 1976 to 2000 which included the Sadler and Stiller years from 1980 to 2000 1st in the garage and then the traffic office.There is a thread on here about Townsons and also one or two about Northwest hauliers maybe you could add some of your experiances over the years onto them.
hi mate,i rememcer gravers my dad drove for them[ronnie higgins and is best mate alfie madlain[they stayed the until prescotts bought the o licence,s off them.do you remember my dad.
The name Ronnie Higgins rings a bell, but I can’t put a face to it…long time ago eh
I reckon it would have been the winters of 68, 69, & 70 when I was at Townsons…nice bloke Roger Townson, I knew his dad from when he drove a scammel & used to deliver the oil to Vitafoam at Glen Mill.
Hi Chris. You will remember Harold Goulding,Bernard Knox Trevor Marland then and maybe these lads Wally Faulkner,John Greenhalgh,Mick Milburn,Peter Kenworthy…Harold Gouldings Grandson Stu Goulding is on here.
Got this photo of Mr & Mrs Townson off Alan,Rogers brother,also in the picture is Ray Knox brother of Bernard who was the fleet engineer.
Is this the motor you remember.
mike mayo still a blue eyed boy does a bit for us retired now cracking lad
That looks like the scammel I remember, it used to be garaged underneath the esso service station on Huddersfield Rd. It was accessed from Shaw Rd. Some of the Townson Tanker Tpt names ring a bell…long time ago now, one driver was known as ‘crusher’…his name is long forgotten.
I remember Mick as one of the best!