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Lay-by is where Cl/Hakes a break from the serious issues

13th May 1999, Page 28
13th May 1999
Page 28
Page 28, 13th May 1999 — Lay-by is where Cl/Hakes a break from the serious issues
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

and our correspondent The Hawk takes a sideways look at road haulage. If you have suitable tales, charitable works, or quirky vehicles, drop The Hawk a line at Commercial Motor, Lay-by, Rm H203, Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS, or fax him on 0181 662 8969.

A TRIO or DELIGHTS

I hree new titles are available in the Nostalgia Road Series.

NHS Ambulances, The First Twenty Five Years, 1948-1973 (Famous Fleets Volume Two) by Chris Batten, chronicles the evolution of the ambulance from the birth of the NHS. At the outset there was a serious shortage of vehicles as well as confusion over local authority boundaries. Some authorities formed joint Fire and Ambulance Services; in Salford the ambulances were painted in the same green as Salford City Transport buses. Well-known marques appearing are: Austin, Bedford, Dennis, Ford and Daimler (the classic DC27).

Durham County Ambulance, Fifty Years of Service (1,948-1999)s written by assistant divisional officer Mike Leonard with a foreword by none other than Prime Minister Tony Blair, who represents Sedgefield, Co Durham. A brief history of the ambulance prior to 1948 includes an excellent photograph circa 1900 of a "cycle ambulance litter"; basically four chaps with moustaches riding two tandems with the patient propped up in the middle. From 1948, Leonard presents a very informative account of the service's progress, including the first radio system in 1973; the first female crew member, Bernadette Williamson, in 1985: and the first paramedics, in 1987.

The London Brick Company (Famous Fleets Volume Three) is written by trans

port historian Bill Aldridge. The humble brick appeared in the Middle East 6,000 years ago; the London Brick Company's origins are rather more recent, dating back to the 1880s in Peterborough, where the semi-dry brick making process was instigated by the Hempstead brothers.

Starting in 1928 with the purchase of its first lorry, a Morris Commercial 1.5tonner, the company was one of the few manufacturers to run its own delivery vehicles. By 1939 the fleet had expanded to 56 Leyland Cubs and Lynxs. 238 AECs, 38 Morris Equiloads, four Bedfords and two Thornycrofts.

All three books are available in bookshops priced 15.99 or from Trans-Pennine Publishing. PO Box 10, Appleby-inWestmorland, Cumbria CA16 6FA: phone, 01768 351053.


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