Before I had passed my driving test, probably about 1960, I had a job as a clerk in the offices of Weddel Meat in Nottingham and then was transferred to the Bedford depot. I lodged with the driver of their delivery van, just like that Morris, and, as I hitched hiked home to Nottingham each weekend and knew every inch of the route, A6 Kettering, Leicester, A 46 A 606 to Nottingham, whenever Ernie was not driving the van and I had a spare moment, I could be found sitting in the cab ādrivingā the whole route back home. I longed to be a lorry driver and hung on every word when the meat drivers of Union Cartage (like Weddel and Blue Star Line, a Vestey company) visited to deliver from Smithfield.
And it was Vestey who ran large cattle stations in the Northern Territory and used the Rotinoffs for their road trains. I was never fortunate enough to see one though.
And while on the subject of cranes, does anyone remember Scottās of Beeston, Nottingham? Their yard is now houses I think and had very restricted access to the main road. I believe they were taken over and the name disappeared.
And tanks, I am on a memory roll this morning. I lived on the old A 52 not far from Chilwell depot and often saw them at speed on the road outside, you could hear the steel tracks from way off.
āSpardoā Re the Rotinoff Roadtrains will pop some stuff on the heavy haulage thread later.
DeanB:
āSpardoā Re the Rotinoff Roadtrains will pop some stuff on the heavy haulage thread later.
Thanks Dean, it occurs to me that, to the unknowledgeable eye, a person might mistake that Rotinoff with what looks like a big T on the grill, for a Mighty Antar.
Wonder what all the sheets were for though, I never remember having to keep cows in the dark.
And to Peterm
Thanks Patrick. Hard to tell from the photo, but I wouldnāt fancy taking it through Rotherhithe tunnel.
Nor me, I remember my first time through there, with an AEC 8-legger, and terrified that I would lose my mirror on one of the oncoming wagons. Scrunched up as far as I dared to the wall on the left. Am I really so old that the Blackwall wasnāt built in those days? Of course not, so why was the Rotherhithe 2-way? Or did I dream it.
oiltreader:
āAnd it was Vestey who ran large cattle stations in the Northern Territory and used the Rotinoffs for their road trains. I was never fortunate enough to see one though. ā
DeanB:
āSpardoā Re the Rotinoff Roadtrains will pop some stuff on the heavy haulage thread later.
Thanks Dean, it occurs to me that, to the unknowledgeable eye, a person might mistake that Rotinoff with what looks like a big T on the grill, for a Mighty Antar.
Wonder what all the sheets were for though, I never remember having to keep cows in the dark.
And to Peterm
Thanks Patrick. Hard to tell from the photo, but I wouldnāt fancy taking it through Rotherhithe tunnel.
Nor me, I remember my first time through there, with an AEC 8-legger, and terrified that I would lose my mirror on one of the oncoming wagons. Scrunched up as far as I dared to the wall on the left. Am I really so old that the Blackwall wasnāt built in those days? Of course not, so why was the Rotherhithe 2-way? Or did I dream it.
I did it in a Foden eight legger Good job their were no pedestrians. The old Blackwall tunnel was open and Iām sure I remember the new one being open in the late 60ās, but Iāve been known to be wrong.
DeanB:
āSpardoā Re the Rotinoff Roadtrains will pop some stuff on the heavy haulage thread later.
Thanks Dean, it occurs to me that, to the unknowledgeable eye, a person might mistake that Rotinoff with what looks like a big T on the grill, for a Mighty Antar.
Wonder what all the sheets were for though, I never remember having to keep cows in the dark.
And to Peterm
Thanks Patrick. Hard to tell from the photo, but I wouldnāt fancy taking it through Rotherhithe tunnel.
Nor me, I remember my first time through there, with an AEC 8-legger, and terrified that I would lose my mirror on one of the oncoming wagons. Scrunched up as far as I dared to the wall on the left. Am I really so old that the Blackwall wasnāt built in those days? Of course not, so why was the Rotherhithe 2-way? Or did I dream it.
I did it in a Foden eight legger Good job their were no pedestrians. The old Blackwall tunnel was open and Iām sure I remember the new one being open in the late 60ās, but Iāve been known to be wrong.
Youāre not wrong, and neither was I, they were both open before or just after 1900, and old as I am, I donāt predate that.
But the question remains, why did we subject ourselves to that?
Blackwall tunnel
,in 1963 i used to stay in the seamanās mission in popular and we used the 15 bus to canning town round about turn right to the docksā¦ if we got off early [the bus ]we used to walk over the blackwall tunnel road bridge and footpath a pub called the IRON BRIDGE was just over the tunnel approach road that we walked over, to the canning town flyover there were 4 pubs one on each corner .so to speak, i have no idea if it was the new or old tunnel but it was defo Blackwall tunnelā¦as 3 years later when you drove from whipps cross down to the tunnel i used to fondly remember it ,so useless info.dbp.
DeanB:
āSpardoā Re the Rotinoff Roadtrains will pop some stuff on the heavy haulage thread later.
Thanks Dean, it occurs to me that, to the unknowledgeable eye, a person might mistake that Rotinoff with what looks like a big T on the grill, for a Mighty Antar.
Wonder what all the sheets were for though, I never remember having to keep cows in the dark.
And to Peterm
Thanks Patrick. Hard to tell from the photo, but I wouldnāt fancy taking it through Rotherhithe tunnel.
Nor me, I remember my first time through there, with an AEC 8-legger, and terrified that I would lose my mirror on one of the oncoming wagons. Scrunched up as far as I dared to the wall on the left. Am I really so old that the Blackwall wasnāt built in those days? Of course not, so why was the Rotherhithe 2-way? Or did I dream it.
I did it in a Foden eight legger Good job their were no pedestrians. The old Blackwall tunnel was open and Iām sure I remember the new one being open in the late 60ās, but Iāve been known to be wrong.
Youāre not wrong, and neither was I, they were both open before or just after 1900, and old as I am, I donāt predate that.
But the question remains, why did we subject ourselves to that?
In my case, stupidity. Iād been through it plenty of time with my dad when I was a kid. I just got carried away. Anyway, I was trying to remember when the new Blackwall tunnel opened. Anyone know for sure before I resort to google?
[/quote]
In my case, stupidity. Iād been through it plenty of time with my dad when I was a kid. I just got carried away. Anyway, I was trying to remember when the new Blackwall tunnel opened. Anyone know for sure before I resort to google?
[/quote]
I have read the inscription on the plaque many times whilst being stuck in the traffic & i.i.r.c it was opened by someone called Desmond Plummer in 1967.
In my case, stupidity. Iād been through it plenty of time with my dad when I was a kid. I just got carried away. Anyway, I was trying to remember when the new Blackwall tunnel opened. Anyone know for sure before I resort to google?
[/quote]
I have read the inscription on the plaque many times whilst being stuck in the traffic & i.i.r.c it was opened by someone called Desmond Plummer in 1967.
Daveā¦
[/quote]
Aaah Desmond Plummerā¦ never heard of him. Stuck in traffic? I never would have believed it with the marvellous network of roads in the capital.
Thanks for the info.
