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Although five months into the new London Midland franchise, Class 150 'Sprinter' No. 150102 still carries the livery of the previous franchisee, Central Trains, on 19th April 2008 as it works away from Droitwich Spa with a Worcester to Shirley working via Birmingham Snow Hill. Central Trains was a troubled franchise, which operated trains in the West Midlands between March 1997 and November 2007. Copyright Photograph John Whitehouse - all rights reserved
China Motor Bus, the erstwhile monopoly franchisee for Hong Kong Island public buses, brought in 8 Marshall-bodied Dennis Darts (CX class) for use of its sole airport route A20. Upon the termination of CMB's franchise in 1998, these 8 buses were retained by the company for use as free shuttle buses to a shopping mall it owns. It was not until 2015 that they were phased out together with the shuttle route. CX5 is shown here leaving CMB Chai Wan Depot in its final days; the depot itself was bulldozed last year.
These two statues stand outside the world's first Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise location. It is off State Street in Salt Lake City. The left figure with a cane is franchisor Colonel Harland Sanders of Kentucky and on the right is franchisee Pete Harman of Utah. Pete persuaded Harland to call the restaurant chain Kentucky Fried Chicken, not Utah Chicken. Kentucky-fried brought images of warm southern hospitality. Harland thought that was a stroke of brand marketing genius. From then on his chain of franchised quick-service restaurants was branded as Kentucky Fried Chicken. Both men are sporting a Kentucky colonel tie, which is also called a shoestring or bolo tie.
KORF (Norfolk International Airport) - 06 NOV 2025
"Challenger Four Echo Hotel" climbing out from RWY 5 en route to Miami - Opa Locka Executive Airport (KOPF).
This aircraft is owned by Eric and Diane Holm, the largest owners of Golden Corral franchises in the United States, thus the "EH" in the registration suffix. It is available for charter through Elite Air.
Production Site: Montreal Trudeau (YUL)
Year of Manufacture: 2023
To Bombardier USA: 13 FEB 2023 as N724EJ
Hex Code: A9B2D5
Passengers: 9
Engines: 2x Honeywell HTF7350
To Global Flight Inc: 02 MAR 2023 as N724EJ
Hex Code: A9B2D5
Passengers: 9
Engines: 2x Honeywell HTF7350
To Holm Leasing LLC: 07 SEP 2023 as N724EH
Operated by Elite Air
Hex Code: A9B2D4
Passengers: 9
Engines: 2x Honeywell HTF7350
A recently vacated Burger King located at the Ramapo Valley Road (US-202) junction in Oakland, New Jersey.
Opened, judging by its look, sometime in the late 1970s or early 80s, gives evidence of its vintage by a very rare road sign -- and one that may be one of a very few left in the country that feature the chain's iconic classic 1970s logo that had survived for decades here at this recently departed franchisee.
158813 passes Muston (east of Bottesford), working 1L11 12.51 Liverpool Lime Street - Norwich. [Pole, 5/6 sections (~6.8m)]
The "Sprinter Express" DMU still carries the livery of previous franchisee, Stagecoach-owned East Midlands Trains, which handed over to East Midlands Railway in August 2019.
I'd come here for the return leg of the 69-hauled Toton - Boston weedkiller, which had a lengthy layover at Grantham - see this picture.
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
New owners for former ScotRail franchisee
Catching up with a couple of news items is that Dutch Firm Nederlandse Spoorwegen have announced that they’re selling their United Kingdom (UK) transport operations to their UK management team. You may wonder who they are and what they operate but in the UK, they operate under the name Abellio.
Abellio UK is responsible for running four of the UK’s rail passenger services – East Midlands, West Midlands, Greater Anglia and Merseyrail - as well claiming to being the fastest growing operator in the London bus network. The new company will be called Transport UK Group Limited. Snappy name.
Of course Abellio is most famous in Scotland - or should that be infamous - for holding the franchise to run ScotRail, taking over from First In 2015. That is until it ended early - or wasn’t extended to be more accurate- and the operation was taken over by the Scottish Government as an ‘operator of last resort’ in 2021 after six years.
So after a few UK transport companies passing into foreign ownership, we have a foreign one passing some of its business into UK ownership, bucking the trend somewhat.
Under Abellio ownership, Glasgow Citybus won the contract to run the Glasgow city rail-link between Central and Queen Street Stations, via Buchanan Bus Station. Standard fare on the service are these short-wheelbase Enviros, one of which is 41602 (SN65ZHA).
Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 16-Dec-17 (DeNoise AI 04-Aug-22).
Operated on behalf of British Airways by Brymon Airways.
'Chelsea Rose', England World Tail livery. (just fitted with a new half rudder).
First flown with the deHavilland Canada test registration C-GEOA, this aircraft was delivered to Brymon Airways as G-BRYI in Mar-91. Brymon was merged with Birmingham European Airways to form Brymon European Airways in Nov-92.
It didn't last long, the company was split again in May-93 with the jet aircraft going to Maersk Air UK and the turboprop aircraft being transferred to Brymon Aviation, now owned by British Airways.
The aircraft was operated for British Airways Express by Brymon in full BA livery from Jul-93. In Mar-02, Brymon was merged with another BA franchisee, British Regional Airlines to form British Airways CitiExpress.
The aircraft was sold back to Bombardier Inc as C-FFBG in Jun-05 and was stored at North Bay, ON, Canada. In Mar-06 it was leased to Air Southwest (UK) as G-WOWE. It was briefly wet-leased to Aurigny Air Services (Guernsey, CI, UK) in May/Jun-11.
In Jul-11 Air Southwest was taken over by Eastern Airways (UK). The aircraft was returned to Bombardier Inc in Jan-12 and stored (at Calgary, AB, Canada ?). It was sold to Avmax Aviation Services as C-GRUR in Sep-12 and leased to CMA Central Mountain Air in Nov-12.
It was withdrawn from service in Nov-17 and stored at Calgary, AB, Canada. It was returned to Avmax in Jun-19 and remained stored until it was ferried to Luanda, Angola in early Dec-22. It was leased to Fly Angola as D2-FDX later that month and continues in service.
However, as of 12-Jul-24, the aircraft continues to appear on Flightradar 24 as C-GRUR! I assume the box has never been changed to a new ADSB code... Updated 12-Jul-24.
"Rediffusion" refers to a prominent British company that distributed radio and TV signals via wired networks, known for its pioneering television advertising and school broadcasting. The company also founded the first ITV franchisee, Associated-Rediffusion, and later expanded into various electronic and manufacturing industries before being broken up and sold in the 1980s.
[AI overview]
I have no idea what is under this manhole cover today; perhaps it's where all the re-runs come from.
Hencote, 27 juni 2018 - Arriva Trains Wales was tot 13 oktober 2018 als franchisehouder van de Wales & Borders franchise verantwoordelijk voor het reizigersvervoer over het spoor in en rond Wales. Dit contract kreeg de vervoerder reeds in december 2003 in handen, maar toen nog als zelfstandige private speler. Sinds 2010 is het moederbedrijf Arriva UK Trains echter in handen van Deutsche Bahn. De Wales & Borders franchise voorziet in het lokale en regionale openbaar vervoer tussen onder meer Cardiff, Swansea en Holyhead, maar bedient ook enkele Engelse steden zoals Shrewsbury, Manchester en Birmingham. Het door Arriva Trains Wales ingezette materieel bestond aan het einde van de vijftienjarige contractperiode vooral uit treinstellen, maar er waren ook nog twee loc-getrokken treindiensten. Eén tussen Manchester en Holyhead/Llandudno en één tussen Cardiff en Holyhead. De laatste verbinding stond overigens in wezen los van de Wales & Borders franchise en werd apart ingekocht door de overheid van Wales. Arriva won dit contract ten koste van open-access-operators Wrexham & Shropshire en Grand Central. Het ging om een luxe alternatief voor de reguliere treinen tussen de hoofd- en havenstad, onder de naam Premier Service. De dienst reed op werkdagen één omloop en ging van start in december 2008. Aan boord profiteren de reizigers van een eerste klas ervaring, met indien gewenst ’s ochtends op weg naar Cardiff onder meer een luxe ontbijt en ’s avonds op weg naar Holyhead een heus driegangendiner. Beiden worden bereid door een meereizende chefkok. Met de overgang van de Wales & Borders franchise naar Transport for Wales (een merknaam van Keolis) bleef de Premier Service behouden, zij het dat in 2019 Mark 4-rijtuigen het gaan overnemen van de nu nog ingezette Mark 3-rijtuigen. Op 27 juni 2018 was van dit alles nog geen sprake en mocht de van DB Cargo gehuurde 67010 trein 1W96 naar Holyhead slepen. De stam is een paar minuten eerder uit Shrewsbury vertrokken en beklimt hier de helling bij Hencote.
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Hencote, 27 June 2018 - Till 13 October 2018 Arriva Trains Wales was the franchisee of the Wales & Borders franchise and therewith responsible for passenger transport by rail in and around Wales. The Train Operating Company took over the contract in december 2003, but was then still in private hands. In 2010 mother company Arriva UK Trains was acquired by Deutsche Bahn. The Wales & Borders franchise provides for local and regional public transport by rail between, among others, Cardiff, Swansea and Holyhead but also covers transport to and from some neighboring English cities such as Shrewsbury, Manchester and Birmingham. The fleet utilized by Arriva Trains Wales at the end of the fifteen year contract consisted mainly of diesel multiple units, but there were also two loco hauled services. One between Manchester and Holyhead/Llandudno and one between Cardiff and Holyhead. The latter was essentially not part of the Wales & Borders franchise as it was tendered separately by the Welsh government. Arriva won the contract at the expense of the open acces operators Wrexham & Shropshire and Grand Central. The service was launched in december 2008 as a luxurious alternative to the regular regional trains between the capital and ferry port, albeit only running on working days and once in both directions. In the last decade or so it carried the name Premier Service. On board passengers receive a first class treatment with comfortabele seating and additional services such as an optional breakfast in the morning heading for Cardiff and even a three course meal in the afternoon heading back towards Holyhead. Both are prepared by an on-board chef. With the transition of the Wales & Borders franchise at the end of 2018, the Premier Service was continued by the new franchisee Transport for Wales; a brand name of Keolis. In 2019 the company will introduce Mark 4 carriages to replace a fleet of Mark 3 carriages, therewith further improving the service. On 27 June 2018 this was not yet the case when DB Cargo hired 67010 was heading train 1W96 on its way to Holyhead. The consist just left Shrewsbury and is now climbing Hencote bank.
Parked on stand at Billund after dark prior to operating BA8211 to London City.This Dornier 328 has recently been painted into the British Airways livery, and is used almost exclusively on the Billlund -London City route. This is 1 of 3 D328s which has been leased from MHS Aviation, and currently is the sole D328 turboprop in the BA scheme.
43309 brings up the rear of 1D38 13.34 St. Pancras International - Nottingham, about a fortnight before East Midlands Railway stopped using the HST trailer sets it inherited from the previous franchisee, East Midlands Train (Stagecoach), having acquired and modified ex-LNER sets (which then ran for less than five months more). It's pictured at Irchester, south of Wellingborough. [Pole, 3/6 sections (~4m)]
I had come here to photograph the DATS overhead line test train, the wiring between Bedford and Corby having recently been completed (electric trains started running the following May). The first run I saw had gone south in such dull conditions I didn't get out the camera, and it also came back in the dull (although it was brighter). The next run south - which I was waiting for now - was cancelled at Kettering but then reinstated and ran about 35 minutes late, passing me here two minutes after this HST had gone north (see this photo).
I'm not sure why I didn't extend the pole higher than this, but it might have been the approach of this train caught me out.
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
Etched deeply into the rubbing bar are the grooves cut by thousands of tow ropes, the horse would cut the corner but the narrow boat would swing wide and the rope would saw the strip. This plucky survivor, now painted black, is at the junction of the Brindley and Telford canals at Winson Green.
Soon to be history is the London Midland liveried class 170, if it is not cascaded it will receive the livery of it's new franchisee. The 170 is working the 11.07 Birmingham to Shrewsbury train.
*I have photo-shopped out a luminous green patch of paint on the bricks, it is not graffiti, I think it is to highlight the crack in the brickwork with a view to repairs.
Copyright Geoff Dowling: All rights reserved
Former Howard Johnson's Restaurant located at 7590 Clayton Rd. in Richmond Heights,MO. The franchisee of this location ceased their affiliation with HJ in 1985 and renamed their establishment Layton's Restaurant. The Giessow family had operated this HJ location since 1959 up until their retirement on June 30th 2004. The Giessow's kept this property remarkably intact and retained numerous holdovers from HoJo's up until the day the closed the restaurant. The orange roof was removed in the late 1980s and the exterior was slightly altered soon thereafter. The interior of the restaurant retained numerous original fixtures dating back to when the restaurant opened for business back in 1955! I had a talk with a landscaper working on the property who said there has been a bitter family dispute over the land where the once successful restaurant is located. He stated that his company comes by every week to keep the property maintained and that the parking lot was repaved in 2017 yet the restaurant is still vacant. It is remarkable and somewhat eerie to see such an intact HJ property sitting empty yet fully intact with the daily specials still written on a whiteboard and even a few original HJ Ice Cream dishes on the dairy bar!
Whew... now that I have gotten that spiel out of the way and am no longer bound to that self-imposed upload restriction, it's about time I got to some retail news up in Horn Lake! l_dawg first alerted me to this a couple weeks ago: Hardee's, which vacated the area in the mid-2000s and very recently has been making a comeback under a new franchisee, has begun work on an existing building in Horn Lake! That building (pictured above) would be an old Bob Evans restaurant that left not too long after Hardee's did and sat empty for years before briefly becoming a Holiday Deli and Ham Co.... oh, and it's across from the original Horn Lake Hardee's, which is now a Zaxby's!
Hardee's // 745 Goodman Road W, Horn Lake, MS 38637
(c) 2015 Retail Retell
These places are public so these photos are too, but just as I tell where they came from, I'd appreciate if you'd say who :)
Crestwood 7-11 Convenience Store located at 8921 FM 729 in Avinger,TX. The building which is currently vacant was most recently occupied by an independently owned convenience store which operated under the name Broussard's Cajun Market.
Note despite using the 7-11 name on its sign, the official 7-Eleven chain has almost always spelled out the word "ELEVEN" leaving me to question if this store was either a franchisee or simply used the "7-11" phrase to identify the hours of the store.
Fleet number 2908 - and one or two others in the Bright Bus Tours
Fleet - has has been reliveried in the colours of London based BigBus Tours although so far without branding. McGill’s Bright Bus Tours is presumably about to announce that it is going to become a franchisee of BigBus Tours. The 2010 vehicle seen here was previously part of Lothian’s Edinburgh Bus Tours fleet, one of whose ticket sellers is seen on the right. EBT operate three branded tours including the Regal Tour, the blue colour of which appears on the vehicle behind.
43055 is the leading power car of this hired-in Midland Mainline HST set, pictured at the site of the former Ouston Jn. (north of Chester-le-Street) working the summer Saturday 1V49 09.40 Newcastle - Newquay.
This was the last summer of Virgin operating the Cross Country franchise, its summer Saturday HST workings to Newquay having gone from being operated by its own HSTs to using sets hired from GNER / National Express East Coast and Midland Mainline. The new franchisee, Arriva, acquired five HST sets of its own, and put them back onto services between the north-east and south-west everyday all year round.
The photo was taken from the embankment which once carried the Consett - Tyne Dock line, now the Consett to Sunderland Railway Path and part of the C2C ("sea to sea") cycle path. Note the Angel of the North top right.
All photographs in my photostream are Copyrighted © Dave Kirwin. All Rights Reserved.
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On the day of the official launch of South Western Railways - the new franchisee of the SWML - 444040 displays the new uninspiring and bland new livery on 3Z01 12:42 London Waterloo to Northam C.S.D.
WEEK 39 – Toys “R” Us Closing, Columbia, SC (III)
Last but not least, here’s an “epilogue” photo of sorts to wrap up this album. Shortly after TRU’s closure, this store was backfilled with a Value City Furniture, which itself relocated from elsewhere in Columbia. Its grand opening occurred in June 2019, approximately a year after TRU’s departure. The space is shared with “Designer Looks,” which I assume is the business name of the VCF franchisee.
I think what they did to the exterior looks pretty nice – much better than when TRU was here, sad to say – and the interior looks to have been very heavily renovated as well. You can see some photos of that over at Google Maps.
Hope y’all enjoyed this last farewell tour of Toys “R” Us to make it to my photostream. As usual, I’ll have more to share from the Columbia area sooner or later. More immediately, though, our next, much more local destination begins uploading on Saturday, so stick around for that!
Value City Furniture // 140 Columbiana Drive, Columbia, SC 29212
(c) 2020 Google Maps Street View
No copyright infringement intended.
Replacing an earlier scanned print with a better version 28-Dec-18, plus Topaz DeNoise AI 12-Jul-24
Named: "City of Glasgow".
First flown with the deHavilland Canada test registration C-GEOA, this aircraft was delivered to Brymon Airways as G-BRYI in Mar-91. Brymon was merged with Birmingham European Airways to form Brymon European Airways in Nov-92.
It didn't last long, the company was split again in May-93 with the jet aircraft going to Maersk Air UK and the turboprop aircraft being transferred to Brymon Aviation, now owned by British Airways.
The aircraft was operated for British Airways Express by Brymon in full BA livery from Jul-93. In Mar-02, Brymon was merged with another BA franchisee, British Regional Airlines to form British Airways CitiExpress.
The aircraft was sold back to Bombardier Inc as C-FFBG in Jun-05 and was stored at North Bay, ON, Canada. In Mar-06 it was leased to Air Southwest (UK) as G-WOWE. It was briefly wet-leased to Aurigny Air Services (Guernsey, CI, UK) in May/Jun-11.
In Jul-11 Air Southwest was taken over by Eastern Airways (UK). The aircraft was returned to Bombardier Inc in Jan-12 and stored (at Calgary, AB, Canada ?). It was sold to Avmax Aviation Services as C-GRUR in Sep-12 and leased to CMA Central Mountain Air in Nov-12.
It was withdrawn from service in Nov-17 and stored at Calgary, AB, Canada. It was returned to Avmax in Jun-19 and remained stored until it was ferried to Luanda, Angola in early Dec-22. It was leased to Fly Angola as D2-FDX later that month and continues in service.
However, as of 12-Jul-24, the aircraft continues to appear on Flightradar 24 as C-GRUR! I assume the box has never been changed to a new ADSB code... Updated 12-Jul-24.
Arby's Restaurant located at 1025 East Dewey Dr. in Sapulpa,OK. This restaurant reopened today (09/06/2017) after being closed for two weeks during which the building underwent a major remodel. The franchisee stated that the restaurant opened in 1975 and was in desperate need of a remodel. I have a slight doubt about this specific restaurant dating back to 1975 as the original building (pre-remodel) greatly resembled the design of a 1970's era Hardees Restaurant.
319 029 is seen in the brand new inspection shed built at Selhurst for the Thameslink trains and at the time of this shot they were being tested and used for driver training between London Bridge and East Croydon.
With the reopening of Snow Hill tunnel between London Blackfriars and Farringdon on 16th May 1988 BR Network Southeast had pre-ordered a large fleet of dual voltage EMU's designated class 319 to operate the new "Thameslink" service. This reinstated cross London line linked the 25kV AC Midland electrified lines from Moorgate and St.Pancras to Bedford with the larger Southern Region 750v DC third rail network.
The initial order was for 60 4-car sets but this was extended to 86 4-car sets after the line was completed as demand was high from the outset. The Thameslink concept was largely seen as an extension of the existing suburban network north and south of the Thames hence the class 319/0's were built without first class accommodation. The final build of 26 sets were designated class 319/1 and had first class accommodation and these were intended for Bedford to Brighton trains only.
After privatisation in 1996 the fleet inherited by the new franchisee called 'Thameslink Rail Ltd' was 20 sets short as they remained with "Connex South Central" which was something of a nonsense as it meant the 25kV ability was now redundant on these units. That was until the Rugby service via the West London line was introduced by CSC some years later. With Thameslink only having 40 class 319/0's out of 60 built they set about a total refurbishment programme starting in 1998 with the 319/0's being refurbished with first class and designated class 319/4 'City Flyer' and the 319/1's with first class were rebuilt without it and designated class 319/3 'City Metro'. This meant the larger TL fleet of 40 sets now had first class and the smaller class 319/3 fleet didn't this was because the new franchise map saw suburban services to Sevenoaks, Oprington and Guildford dropped with the core route being mainline Bedford to Brighton with a 15min frequency and the suburban being Luton to Luton via Sutton half hourly each way so a 15min frequency on the core section between Streatham and Luton.
Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge located at 400 South Meridian Rd. in Oklahoma City,OK. The restaurant was demolished by the mid early 1990s and replaced with a new building occupied by an independently restaurant operating under the name Louie's Grill and Bar. The motor lodge which opened in the mid to late 1960's has continued to carry the HJ name despite the numerous alterations required over the years. The majority of the changes occurred during the time Cendant owned the HJ name and required many franchisees to make drastic alterations to the properties or drop the HJ brand (which many properties did to avoid unnecessary renovations). The Cendant Corporation made it a point to cover the gate lodge buildings along with the entire exterior of the complexes to be covered with stucco. This motor lodge is a prime example of the franchisee trying to keep the HJ brand going yet clearly enduring a bunch of unnecessary architectural modifications over the years.
It's April 1995 and the morning of my first ever full day in the USA. We're on our school's lower sixth form exchange trip, we flew from London Heathrow to Nashville TN via Chicago the previous day, then travelled to Bowling Green KY where we would stay for two nights in the Howard Johnson Hotel.
Unfortunately the following January a fatal fire would occur at the property when the franchisee set it alight after hitting financial issues.
Back to our school trip, and after our two night stay in Bowling Green - during which we would visit the Western Kentucky University campus - it was back on the road for a 170 mile plus drive to western Tennessee and the city of Dyersburg where we would stay with families for a couple of weeks or so.
Having grown up in the 1980's as a big fan of American TV such as the A-Team, Dukes of Hazzard, Fall Guy, Knight Rider etc, I was very happy with my surroundings on emerging from the hotel.
Everything in America looked just like it did on the telly and in films, there were fascinating vehicles everywhere, and the portions of food were massive.
There began my love of exploring the USA.
The outward leg of UK Railtours "The Return of the Jolly Fisherman", 1Z43 08.18 St. Pancras International - Skegness (via the Midland Main Line, Nottingham and the Grantham avoiding line), passes Sewstern Level Crossing, Sedgebrook (between Bottesford and Grantham, close to Muston). [Pole, 4.5/6 sections (~6m)]
The power cars are Rail Adventure's 43468 and 43480, both previously part of Grand Central's fleet of six which were then used for a short period by East Midlands Trains / East Midlands Railway; they carry their full European Vehicle Numbers almost correctly - complete with spaces and the hyphen before the check digit (unlike many new multiple units, which omit both - confusing if you don't know the system!), although without the country part of the Vehicle Keeper Mark (the letters at the end) being underlined - these being 92 70 0043468-2 D-RADVE and 92 70 0043480-7 D-RADVE respectively.
The eight trailers are owned by the 125 Group, and were reported as 41067, 41057 (both TF), 40741 (TFKB), 42337, 42119, 42120, 42111 (all TS) and 44000 (TGS); the first seven carry the livery of Stagecoach-owned franchisee East Midlands Trains (with some carrying the "EMR Intercity" branding of its successor), while the last one (out of view) carries GWR (the First Group-owned franchise) green.
I think this was only the second mainline railtour (thanks to Clagmaster for the correction) to use HST trailer coaches owned by a preservation group and Rail Adventure power cars (although the Rail Adventure power cars have also been used back-to-back at the front of the train, like conventional locos).
I nearly didn't bother with this, the weather forecast for the afternoon (the return leg) being much better than for the morning, but it ended up as my only sunny shot of the tour! With wall-to-wall cloud forecast for much of the day by both the Met Office and BBC Weather websites, I wasn't very enthusiastic about getting out of bed (especially after a few late nights following post-work summer evening photography sessions), but I was amazed to actually see a reasonable amount of blue sky as I had breakfast. I'd already pencilled in coming here for the outward leg, and getting the return at Bellwater Jn.
As can be seen, there was a lot more cloud than blue sky, but it was looking promising. 1Z43 was running one block section behind 2S13, the stopper to Skegness (which ran via Grantham, of course), having caught it up as a result of being a few minutes ahead of schedule. According to Realtime Trains, 2S13 arrived at Bottesford bang on time (to within a quarter minute) but it's station call was a minute and a quarter instead of just half a minute. The sun had gone behind a cloud, and we thought it possible it would not clear before 1Z43 came round the corner... but that extra 45 seconds made all the difference, and the foreground brightened up considerably just seconds before the train appeared: it wasn't full sun, but the sun had reached the very thin edge of the cloud. The sun cleared the cloud less than a minute later, but if it had been fully out then I think the lighting might have been too harsh (given it was about 11.20am two days after the summer solstice).
1Z43 was booked a pathing stop on the Grantham avoiding line, to allow 2S13 to go into Grantham and then head for Skegness - and I assumed the tour would not be allowed to run in front of 2S13. It was then booked another shorter pathing stop at Sleaford station, to allow a train from Skegness to come off the single line from Heckington. So I decided that there was a very good chance of a second shot near Heckington, and I gave chase. 1Z43 did indeed wait at Barkston East Jn. for 2S13, but more time than necessary was allowed and it is recorded as running eight minutes early between there and Sleaford. In fact, I got stopped at both level crossings on the A153 from Grantham to Sleaford for the HST to pass! But it departed Sleaford on time, and I made it to Great Hale Drove no. 1 level crossing (east of Heckington) with plenty of time to set up; unfortunately, the clouds seemed to be interlocked with the signalling, and the train passed in dull conditions - even though Heckington itself was in lovely sunshine.
A similar thing happened at Bellwater Jn. for the return. While there were now very few clouds in the sky, they were moving slowly and, less than five minutes before the train passed (and some time after the signal had been pulled off) the sun went behind one which took almost ten minutes to pass. Exactly the same happened when I tried to photograph the Greater Anglia-liveried 170 twenty minutes behind the HST - a frustrating day!
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
This is the Pizza Hut restaurant located at 63 Jenkins Road in Whitesburg, KY. It originally opened in 1981 as the first major pizza restaurant in Whitesburg as well as Letcher County, and has seen various remodels over the years. It officially closed on February 9, 2021 as one of the 600+ Pizza Hut stores slated to close that were owned by franchisee NPC International (ironically enough on National Pizza Day).
Based on the earlier Grand Central Trains version, this Wright-bodied Scania carries all-over advertising for the former East Coast franchisee Great North Eastern Railway. All-over adverts such as this have become less common in recent years, fortunately so in most cases. Whilst I'm not aware of any GNER advertising liveries on regular service buses, at least one feeder service was operated by GNER-liveried coaches in the Yorkshire area (30-Jan-12).
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Fleet number 8930, now in full BigBus Edinburgh livery, was seen awaiting its next duty at Waterloo Place. The burgundy and cream colours have replaced the orange colours of Bright Bus Tours which is becoming a franchisee of London based sightseeing company, BigBus Tours. The Livingston based vehicle and Bright Bus came into the McGill’s fold with the latter’s acquisition of First Scotland East in September 2022. First had launched Bright Bus as its Edinburgh tour operation in 2019. The vehicle dates from 2009.
Never thought I’d be uploading a photo of this establishment… yet – and call me crazy here – but something about it caught my eye the other day XD Gonna be hard for whoever the new tenant is (an unknown as of right now, but I’ll be sure to monitor the situation) to wrap up these extensive renovations anytime soon, haha! Give this photo a zoom-in and you’ll see that the entire rear wall of this Goodman Road structure in Southaven, plus a good chunk of the front wall, have been removed… as have the ceiling and insulation, from the looks of it. You can also see work on the exterior awning taking place, which is interesting, considering it’s common to the rest of the admittedly odd strip of “stores” here (neighbors include an urgent medical clinic and a car stereo and alarm place that’s been missing part of its sign for three years now!); thus, I doubt the design would be able to stray very much from that seen on the right of the pic. Up above the awning, too, you can see the labelscar of this space’s previous tenant – WingStop, owned by franchisee Rick Roll Ross.
WingStop (now closed) // 186 Goodman Road W, Southaven, MS 38671
(c) 2018 Retail Retell
These places are public so these photos are too, but just as I tell where they came from, I'd appreciate if you'd say who :)
I horizontally flipped the image so I wouldn't have to reverse read the McDonald's and Rexall signs.
Gordy's is a major franchisee in the County Market grocery store chain. This is one of several Gordy's County Market locations in the western Wisconsin region.
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Please do not use this photo or any part of this photo without first asking for permission, thank you.
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The station's name comes from the St. Pancras neighbourhood, which originates from the fourth-century Christian boy martyr Pancras of Rome. The station was commissioned by the Midland Railway (MR), who had a network of routes in the Midlands, and in south and west Yorkshire and Lancashire but no route of its own to London. Before 1857 the MR used the lines of the L&NWR for trains into the capital; subsequently the company's Leicester and Hitchin Railway gave access to London via the Great Northern Railway (GNR).
In 1862, traffic for the second International Exhibition suffered extensive delays over the stretch of line into London over the GNR's track; the route into the city via the L&NWR was also at capacity, with coal trains causing the network at Rugby and elsewhere to reach effective gridlock. This was the stimulus for the MR to build its own line to London from Bedford, which would be just under 50 miles (80 km) long. Samuel Carter was solicitor for the parliamentary bill, which was sanctioned in 1863.
Design and construction
The interior of the Barlow Trainshed, circa 1870
The station was designed by William Henry Barlow and constructed on a site that had previously been a slum called Agar Town. Though coal and goods were the main motivation to build the station, the Midland realised the prestige of having a central London terminus and decided it must have a front on Euston Road. The company purchased the eastern section of land on the road's north side owned by Earl Somers.
The approaching line to the station crossed the Regent's Canal at height allowing the line reasonable gradients; this resulted in the level of the line at St Pancras being 20 ft (6.1 m) above the ground level. Initial plans were for a two or three span roof with the void between station and ground level filled with spoil from tunnelling to join the Midland Main Line to the St. Pancras branch. Instead, due to the value of the land in such a location the lower area was used for freight, in particular beer from Burton. As a result, the undercroft was built with columns and girders, maximising space, set out to the same plans as those used for beer warehouses, and with a basic unit of length that of a beer barrel.
The contract for the construction of the station substructure and connecting lines was given to Messrs. Waring, with Barlow's assistant Campion as supervisor. The lower floor for beer warehousing contained interior columns 15 ft (4.57 m) wide, and 48 ft (14.63 m) deep carrying girders supporting the main station and track. The connection to the Widened Lines (St. Pancras branch) ran below the station's bottom level, in an east-to-west direction.
To avoid the foundations of the roof interfering with the space beneath, and to simplify the design, and minimise cost, it was decided to construct a single span roof, with cross ties for the arch at the station level. The arch was sprung directly from the station level, with no piers. Additional advice on the design of the roof was given to Barlow by Rowland Mason Ordish. The arches' ribs had a web depth of 6 ft (1.8 m), mostly open ironwork. The span width, from wall to wall was 245 ft 6 in (74.83 m), with a rib every 29 ft 4 in (8.94 m) The arch was a slightly pointed design, with a reduced radius of curvature at the springing points. The Butterley Company was contracted to construct the arches. The total cost of the 24 rib roof and glazing was over £53,000, of which over half was for the main ribs. The cost of the gable end was a further £8,500.
The clock tower of St Pancras:
The single-span overall roof was the largest such structure in the world at the time of its completion. The materials used were wrought iron framework of lattice design, with glass covering the middle half and timber (inside)/slate (outside) covering the outer quarters. The two end screens were glazed in a vertical rectangular grid pattern with decorative timber cladding around the edge and wrought iron finials around the outer edge. It was 689 feet (210.01 m) long, 240 feet (73.15 m) wide, and 100 feet (30.48 m) high at the apex above the tracks. At the time of opening, it was the world's largest unsupported station roof.
Local services began running to the Metropolitan Railway junction underneath the terminus on 13 July 1868. The station itself opened to the public on 1 October. The first service was an overnight mail train from Leeds.
Early services
St Pancras was built during a period of expansion for the MR, as the major routes to Manchester, Nottingham, Sheffield and Carlisle opened during this time. By 1902, there were 150 trains arriving and leaving the station daily, though this figure was far less than Waterloo or Liverpool Street. As well as Midland services, the Great Eastern Railway (GER) used St Pancras as a "West End" terminus for trains to Great Yarmouth, Norwich, Lowestoft between 1870 and 1917. At the turn of the 20th century, St Pancras also had a faster service to Cambridge than King's Cross, at 71 minutes. GER services were suspended because of World War I and never resumed.
The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway (LTSR) began offering boat train services from St Pancras from 9 July 1894, following the opening of the Tottenham and Forest Gate Railway. The trains ran from St Pancras to Tilbury via South Tottenham and Barking. Tilbury Docks then provided a connection to Australia and Scandinavia. The following year, the LTSR began a service from St Pancras to Southend Central. Boat trains continued to run from St Pancras until 1963, after which they were moved to Liverpool Street and Fenchurch Street.
Grouping, nationalisation and privatisation
The station was damaged by a bomb in May 1941 during the Blitz.
The Railways Act of 1921 forced the merger of the Midland with the London and North Western Railway (L&NWR) into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS), and the LMS adopted the LNWR's (the "Premier Line") Euston station as its principal London terminus. The Midland Grand Hotel was closed in 1935, and the building was subsequently used as offices for British Railways. During World War II, bombing inflicted damage on the train shed, which was only partially reglazed after the war. On the night of 10–11 May 1941 a bomb fell onto the station floor at platform 3, exploding in the beer vaults underneath. The station was not significantly damaged, but was closed for eight days, with platforms 2–3 remaining closed until June. In 1947 the St. Pancras junction was relaid with prefabricated trackwork, along with associated changes to the signalling system.
On the creation of British Railways (BR) in 1948, St Pancras received a significant investment after neglect by the LMS. Destinations included the London area services to North Woolwich, St Albans and Bedford. Long-distance trains reached Glasgow, Leeds, Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester, with famous named trains including The Palatine to Manchester, The Thames-Clyde Express to Glasgow, and The Master Cutler to Sheffield (transferred from King's Cross in 1966, which itself had transferred from Marylebone eight years earlier).
On 7 October 1957, the signalling at St Pancras was upgraded, replacing the three original boxes with a power box controlling 205 route switches and 33 points over a network of 1,400 relays. From 1960 to 1966, electrification work on the West Coast Main Line between London and Manchester saw a new Midland Pullman from Manchester to St Pancras. These trains and those to Glasgow were withdrawn following the completion of the rebuilding of Euston and the consolidation of these services.
By the 1960s, St Pancras was seen as redundant, and several attempts were made to close it and demolish the hotel (by then known as St Pancras Chambers). These attempts provoked strong and successful opposition, with the campaign led by the later Poet Laureate, John Betjeman. Jane Hughes Fawcett with the Victorian Society was instrumental in its preservation, and was dubbed "the furious Mrs. Fawcett" by British rail officials. Many of the demonstrators had witnessed the demolition of the nearby Euston Arch a few years previously, and were strongly opposed to the distinctive architecture of St Pancras suffering the same fate. The station became Grade I listed building in November 1967, preventing any drastic modifications. The plans were scrapped by BR in December 1968, realising that it was more cost-effective to modernise the hotel instead, though they disliked owning it.
In the 1970s, the train shed roof was in danger of collapse, and the newly appointed Director of Environment Bernard Kaukas persuaded the company to invest £3m to save it. In 1978, a Private Eye piece said that British Rail really wanted to demolish St Pancras but were opposed by "a lot of long-haired sentimentalists" and "faceless bureaucrats" and praised the office blocks that replaced the Euston Arch.
After the sectorisation of British Rail in 1986, main-line services to the East Midlands were provided by the InterCity sector, with suburban services to St Albans, Luton and Bedford by Network SouthEast. In 1988 the Snow Hill tunnel re-opened resulting in the creation of the Thameslink route and the resultant diversion of the majority of suburban trains to the new route. The station continued to be served by trains running on the Midland main line to Leicester, Nottingham and Sheffield, together with a few suburban services to Bedford and Luton. These constituted only a few trains an hour and left the station underused.
Following the privatisation of British Rail, the long-distance services from St Pancras were franchised to Midland Mainline, a train operating company owned by National Express, starting on 28 April 1996. The few remaining suburban trains still operating into St Pancras were operated by the Thameslink train operating company, owned by Govia, from 2 March 1997.
A small number of trains to and from Leeds were introduced, mainly because the High Speed Train sets were maintained there and were already running empty north of Sheffield. During the 2000s major rebuild of the West Coast Main Line, St Pancras again temporarily hosted direct and regular inter-city trains to Manchester, this time via the Hope Valley route (via the Dore South curve) under the title of Project Rio.
New role
Model of the extended St Pancras station (left) and King's Cross station (right, seen before restoration circa 2012)
The original plan for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) involved a tunnel from south-east of London to an underground terminus in the vicinity of King's Cross. However, a late change of plan, principally driven by the then Secretary of State for the Environment Michael Heseltine's desire for urban regeneration in east London, led to a change of route, with the new line approaching London from the east. This opened the possibility of reusing St Pancras as the terminus, with access via the North London Line, which crosses the throat of the station.
The idea of using the North London line was rejected in 1994 by the transport secretary, John MacGregor, as "difficult to construct and environmentally damaging". However, the idea of using St Pancras station as the terminus was retained, albeit now linked by 12.4 miles (20 km) of new tunnels to Dagenham via Stratford.
London and Continental Railways (LCR), created at the time of British Rail privatisation, was selected by the government in 1996 to reconstruct St Pancras, build the CTRL, and take over the British share of the Eurostar operation. LCR had owned St Pancras station since privatisation to allow the station to be redeveloped. Financial difficulties in 1998, and the collapse of Railtrack in 2001, caused some revision of this plan, but LCR retained ownership of the station.
The design and project management of reconstruction was undertaken on behalf of LCR by Rail Link Engineering (RLE), a consortium of Bechtel, Arup, Systra and Halcrow. The original reference design for the station was by Nick Derbyshire, former head of British Rail's in-house architecture team. The master plan of the complex was by Foster and Partners, and the lead architect of the reconstruction was Alistair Lansley, a former colleague of Nick Derbyshire recruited by RLE.
To accommodate 300-metre+ Eurostar trains, and to provide capacity for the existing trains to the Midlands and the new Kent services on the high-speed rail link, the train shed was extended a considerable distance northwards by a new flat-roofed shed. The station was initially planned to have 13 platforms under this extended train shed. East Midlands services would use the western platforms, Eurostar services the middle platforms, and Kent services the eastern platforms. The Eurostar platforms and one of the Midland platforms would extend back into the Barlow train shed. Access to Eurostar for departing passengers would be via a departure suite on the west of the station, and then to the platforms by a bridge above the tracks within the historic train shed. Arriving Eurostar passengers would leave the station by a new concourse at its north end.
This original design was later modified, with access to the Eurostar platforms from below, using the station undercroft and allowing the deletion of the visually intrusive bridge. By dropping the extension of any of the Midland platforms into the train shed, space was freed up to allow wells to be constructed in the station floor, which provided daylight and access to the undercroft.
The reconstruction of the station was recorded in the BBC Television documentary series The Eight Hundred Million Pound Railway Station broadcast as six 30-minute episodes between 13‒28 November 2007.
Rebuilding
The Meeting Place and the Olympic Rings for the 2012 Summer Olympics
By early 2004, the eastern side of the extended train shed was complete, and the Barlow train shed was closed to trains. From 12 April 2004, Midland Mainline trains terminated at an interim station occupying the eastern part of the extension immediately adjacent to the entrance.
As part of the construction of the western side of the new train shed that now began, an underground "box" was constructed to house new platforms for Thameslink, which at this point ran partially under the extended station. In order for this to happen, the existing Thameslink tunnels between Kentish Town and King's Cross Thameslink were closed between 11 September 2004 and 15 May 2005 while the works were carried out. Thameslink services from the north terminated in the same platforms as the Midland Main Line trains, while services from the south terminated at King's Cross Thameslink.
When the lines were re-opened, the new station box was still only a bare concrete shell and could not take passengers. Thameslink trains reverted to their previous route but ran through the station box without stopping. The budget for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link works did not include work on the fitting out of the station, as these works had originally been part of the separate Thameslink 2000 works programme. Despite lobbying by rail operators who wished to see the station open at the same time as St Pancras International, the Government failed to provide additional funding to allow the fit out works to be completed immediately following the line blockade. Eventually, on 8 February 2006, Alistair Darling, the Secretary of State for Transport, announced £50 million funding for the fit-out of the station, plus another £10–15 million for the installation of associated signalling and other lineside works.
The fit-out works were designed by Chapman Taylor and Arup (Eurostar) and completed by ISG Interior Plc Contractors collaborating with Bechtel as Project Managers. The client was London and Continental Railways who were advised by Hitachi Consulting.
In 2005, planning consent was granted for a refurbishment of the former Midland Grand Hotel building, with plans to refurbish and extend it as a hotel and apartment block. The newly refurbished hotel opened to guests on 21 March 2011 with a grand opening ceremony on 5 May.
By the middle of 2006, the western side of the train shed extension was completed. The rebuilding cost was in the region of £800 million, up from an initial estimate of £310 million.
The International station
In early November 2007, Eurostar conducted a testing programme in which some 6000 members of the public were involved in passenger check-in, immigration control and departure trials, during which the "passengers" each made three return journeys out of St Pancras to the entrance to the London tunnel. On 4 September 2007, the first test train ran from Paris Gare du Nord to St Pancras. Children's illustrator Quentin Blake was commissioned to provide a huge mural of an "imaginary welcoming committee" as a disguise for one of the remaining ramshackle Stanley Building South immediately opposite the station exit.
St Pancras was officially re-opened as St Pancras International, and the High Speed 1 service was launched on 6 November 2007 by Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. Services were extended to Rotterdam and Amsterdam in April 2018.
During an elaborate opening ceremony, actor Timothy West, as Henry Barlow, addressed the audience, which was also entertained by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the singers Lemar and Katherine Jenkins. In a carefully staged set piece, the first Class 395 train and two Class 373 trains arrived through a cloud of dry ice in adjacent platforms within seconds of each other. During the ceremony, Paul Day's large bronze statue The Meeting Place was also unveiled. At a much smaller ceremony on 12 November 2007, the bronze statue of John Betjeman by sculptor Martin Jennings was unveiled by Betjeman's daughter, the author Candida Lycett Green. Public service by Eurostar train via High Speed 1 started on 14 November 2007. In a small ceremony, station staff cut a ribbon leading to the Eurostar platforms. In the same month, services to the East Midlands were transferred to a new franchisee, East Midlands Trains. The low-level Thameslink platforms opened on 9 December 2007, replacing King's Cross Thameslink.
St Pancras has retained a reputation of having one of the most recognisable facades of all the London termini, and is known as the "cathedral of the railways". In Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations by Simon Jenkins, the station was one of only ten to be awarded five stars. The station has bilingual signs in French and English, one of the few in England to do so.
Services:
St Pancras contains four groups of platforms on two levels, accessed via the main concourse at ground level. The below-surface group contains through platforms A and B, and the upper level has three groups of terminal platforms: domestic platforms 1–4 and 11–13 on each side of international platforms 5–10. Platforms A & B serve Thameslink, 1–4 connect to the Midland Main Line, while platforms 11–13 lead to High Speed 1; there is no connection between the two lines, except for a maintenance siding outside the station. There are also a variety of shops and restaurants within the station concourse.
The station is the London terminus for Eurostar's high-speed trains to Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and Lille via the Channel Tunnel. It is also the terminus for East Midlands services from London to Derby, Leicester, Nottingham, Sheffield, and smaller towns en route. Thameslink trains on the cross-London Thameslink route call at platforms beneath the main station, south to Gatwick Airport and Brighton and north to Luton Airport Parkway for Luton Airport and Bedford. High-speed domestic services to Kent, run by Southeastern, depart on the same level as Eurostar & East Midlands Trains.
The terminal is one of relatively few railway stations in England to feature multilingual signage in English and French. In March 2014, the station's public relations team commissioned a study of mispronounced words, reportedly as a result of passengers referring to the station as "St Pancreas".
Time to look at some lesser known carriers which provide just as much variety alongside the biggest players in the sky...
Scotland's national carrier, Loganair is a regional carrier providing vital services from UK airports; the vast majority of flights emanating from the Scottish bases in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow-International and Inverness; as well as having operating bases in the Isle of Man, plus City of Derry in Northern Ireland, as well as Newcastle and Teeside in the North East of England.
Founded 62 years in 1962, the carrier began providing services using small Piper PA-23 and later Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander to the Orkney Islands and Shetland. The company expanded following its acquisition by the Royal Bank of Scotland between 1968 to 1983, later being sold to Airlines of Britain Group, now by Airline Investments Limited since 2015.
The carrier began operating as a franchisee to British Airways in 1993, with aircraft branded as British Airways but operated by Loganair; the franchise ending in 2008 when the company signed with Flybe as a franchisee... This agreement ended in 2017 as the carrier announced it would be operating independently after last doing so 24 years ago. The carrier adopted a new livery, featuring a black underbelly, red engines and tartan tail.
The carrier has grown ever since going independent, taking advantage of the demise of Flybmi in 2019 and Flybe in 2020. Today, the carrier operates 42 aircraft, and continues to operate the shortest airline route in the world, from Westray to Papa Westray in the Orkney's.
Currently, Loganair operates 10 ATR turbo-props, which includes 6 ATR 42s and 4 ATR 72s. Loganair are due to receive 4 second-hand ATR 72s.
Lima Mike Tango Charlie is one of 4 ATR 72s operated by Loganair, delivered new to Air France regional subsidiary, HOP! on lease from NAC on 7th July 2015 as F-HOPX, simplified at Air France Hop on 1st September 2019 following restructuring before withdrawal on 31st January 2020 going off-lease before going over to Loganair as G-LMTC on 26th January 2022 on lease from NAC. She is powered by 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PW127M engines.
ATR 72-600 G-LMTC 'Clan Cairns / Clann MhicCàrnaich' lifts off from Runway 23R at Manchester (MAN) on LM694 to Isle of Man (IOM).
Roadside America: An Indianan man has been collecting vintage gas dealership signs since 2013. He has put these signs on 18 foot poles to celebrate the coming and going of gas station product distribution franchisors / brands.
And so the time has come. The TPE class 68s have at the time of writing just four days left in service. Well, three because the penultimate day is a strike day. Ditched by management, they were never fully introduced, for many reasons. Apathy, covid, industrial action, these have all taken their toll. So, from the 10th of December 2023 there will be less trains traversingthe Pennines, and these mk5 sets will be sat in private storage at the taxpayers cost. Because TPE is in the control of the Department for transport after acute failings by its franchisee, First Trans Pennine. Well, they may as well brush them under the carpet then.
But we love em!! Such presence. Great locos, with catching names. We can hear them from our house, 68 tinnitus my Partner Janes calls it. Did we take them for granted? We did, a bit. But with four days to go I will begin to upload my final farewell, began when this one was taken at the beginning of September.
Numerical order or Chronological?
Well, this photo is the first in both orders, 68019 Brutus, and this loco never returned here, last seen working nuclear flasks off Sellafield...
68019 Brutus runs a transpennine express nova 3 set with 68030 Black Douglas from Scarborough to Crewe South Yard as train 5Q42 on Saturday September the 2nd 2023, seen here just past Colton junction heading towards Doncaster, with the train running west via the Hope Valley. The set had been sat at Scarborough for some time having been failed with a defective headlight.
Former Holiday Inn located at 914 SE Madison St. in Topeka,KS. The nine story hotel has been abandoned since 2005. After dropping its Holiday Inn affiliation the property was rebranded as a Days Inn and later became independently operated under the name Civic Center Inn. In its final months of operating the property was rebranded as a Red Carpet Inn although it was for such a short time that the signs for Civic Center Inn didn't even get replaced. In 2008 a proposal was made by a franchisee of Holiday Inn to renovate this motel and rebrand it as a Holiday Inn but that plan never came to fruition.
… for busy Americans in the 1950s and early 1960s.
Serving fast food has become not so fast in the 21st Century. In the most current study of drive-thru order fulfillment times, Burger King came in the fastest at 193.31 seconds, according to QSR's 2018 Drive-thru Study. McDonald's long ago decided to avoid the speed lane. It is now the slowest among the largest ten fast food burger chains at 273 seconds from drive-thru order placement to order fulfillment. It should be mentioned that drive-thrus are especially engineered by restaurant chains to be the fastest in their service times.
This sign is a vintage McDonald's speedee service system sign that is displayed in the American Sign Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio.
As a marketing message connoting speed of service, Speedee was displayed throughout the burgeoning burger chain. This sign was built in 1963 for the McDonald's franchisee in Huntsville, Alabama. The Speedee Service System was created by McDonald's founders, brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald of San Bernardino, California.
WEEK 50 – Church Road McD's, Pre-Remodel
Normally our photoset would end there, but this week, I've got special extended sets of 12 for y'all! So as we press onward, we come across this sign posted to the left of the restaurant's entry door (on the right-side wall), asking customers to send their compliments or complaints to local franchisee Ken-Kel Management Co. This sign would probably ordinarily be easily ignored by, I'm assuming, most of y'all, but it's always stood out to me, primarily because I remember always seeing this sign in the drive-thru window of my Hernando McDonald's from a very young age :) I always liked the phrasing, and of course the smiley faces. Plus I always thought it was funny how similar Ken-Kel sounded to “Kenan and Kel” :P Sadly, these signs have been phased out from the local McDonald's locations as they remodel. (EDIT: ...Or it could just be that they don't own as many locations anymore, as per this. Good to know.)
(c) 2018 Retail Retell
These places are public so these photos are too, but just as I tell where they came from, I'd appreciate if you'd say who :)
International station
St Pancras railway station (/ˈpæŋkrəs/), also known as London St Pancras or St Pancras International and officially since 2007 as London St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus on Euston Road in the London Borough of Camden. It is the terminus for Eurostar services from Belgium, France and the Netherlands to London. It provides East Midlands Railway services to Leicester, Corby, Derby, Sheffield and Nottingham on the Midland Main Line, Southeastern high-speed trains to Kent via Ebbsfleet International and Ashford International, and Thameslink cross-London services to Bedford, Cambridge, Peterborough, Brighton, Horsham and Gatwick Airport. It stands between the British Library, the Regent's Canal and London King's Cross railway station, with which it shares a London Underground station, King's Cross St Pancras.
The station was constructed by the Midland Railway (MR), which had an extensive rail network across the Midlands and the North of England, but no dedicated line into London. After rail traffic problems following the 1862 International Exhibition, the MR decided to build a connection from Bedford to London with its own terminus. The station was designed by William Henry Barlow and constructed with a single-span iron roof. Following the station's opening on 1 October 1868, the MR constructed the Midland Grand Hotel on the station's façade, which has been widely praised for its architecture and is now a Grade I listed building along with the rest of the station.
In the late 1960s, plans were made to demolish St Pancras entirely and divert services for King's Cross and Euston, leading to fierce opposition. The complex underwent an £800 million refurbishment to become the terminal for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link/High-Speed 1/HS1 as part of an urban regeneration plan across East London, which was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in November 2007. A security-sealed terminal area was constructed for Eurostar services to mainland Europe via High Speed 1 and the Channel Tunnel, with platforms for domestic trains to the north and south-east of England. The restored station has 15 platforms, a shopping centre, and a coach facility. London St Pancras International is owned by HS1 Ltd and managed by Network Rail (High Speed), a subsidiary of Network Rail.
Location
St Pancras is at the southern end of the London Borough of Camden on a site orientated north–south, deeper than it is wide. The south is bounded by Euston Road (part of the London Inner Ring Road), and its frontage is the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, while the west is bounded by Midland Road which separates it from the British Library and the east by Pancras Road which separates it from King's Cross station. The British Library is on the former goods yard site. Euston railway station is around ten minutes' walk along Euston Road.
Behind the hotel, the train shed is elevated 5 m (17 ft) above street level and the area below forms the station undercroft which is where most of the shops and restaurants are located, along with the Eurostar departure lounge. The northern half of the station is mainly bounded to the east by Camley Street, with Camley Street Natural Park across the road. To the north-east is King's Cross Central, formerly known as the Railway Lands, a complex of intersecting railway lines crossed by several roads and the Regent's Canal.
Several London bus routes have stops nearby, including 73, 205 and 390.
International station
Design
The original plan for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) involved a tunnel from south-east of London to an underground terminus in the vicinity of King's Cross. However, a late change of plan, principally driven by the then Secretary of State for the Environment Michael Heseltine's desire for urban regeneration in east London, led to a change of route, with the new line approaching London from the east. This opened the possibility of reusing St Pancras as the terminus, with access via the North London Line, which crosses the throat of the station.
The idea of using the North London line was rejected in 1994 by the transport secretary, John MacGregor, as "difficult to construct and environmentally damaging". However, the idea of using St Pancras station as the terminus was retained, albeit now linked by 12.4 miles (20 km) of new tunnels to Dagenham via Stratford.
London and Continental Railways (LCR), created at the time of British Rail privatisation, was selected by the government in 1996 to reconstruct St Pancras, build the CTRL, and take over the British share of the Eurostar operation. LCR had owned St Pancras station since privatisation to allow the station to be redeveloped. Financial difficulties in 1998, and the collapse of Railtrack in 2001, caused some revision of this plan, but LCR retained ownership of the station.
The design and project management of reconstruction was undertaken on behalf of LCR by Rail Link Engineering (RLE), a consortium of Bechtel, Arup, Systra and Halcrow. The original reference design for the station was by Nick Derbyshire, former head of British Rail's in-house architecture team. The master plan of the complex was by Foster and Partners, and the lead architect of the reconstruction was Alistair Lansley, a former colleague of Nick Derbyshire recruited by RLE.
To accommodate 300-metre+ Eurostar trains, and to provide capacity for the existing trains to the Midlands and the new Kent services on the high-speed rail link, the train shed was extended a considerable distance northwards by a new flat-roofed shed. The station was initially planned to have 13 platforms under this extended train shed. East Midlands services would use the western platforms, Eurostar services the middle platforms, and Kent services the eastern platforms. The Eurostar platforms and one of the Midland platforms would extend back into the Barlow train shed. Access to Eurostar for departing passengers would be via a departure suite on the west of the station, and then to the platforms by a bridge above the tracks within the historic train shed. Arriving Eurostar passengers would leave the station by a new concourse at its north end.
This original design was later modified, with access to the Eurostar platforms from below, using the station undercroft and allowing the deletion of the visually intrusive bridge. By dropping the extension of any of the Midland platforms into the train shed, space was freed up to allow wells to be constructed in the station floor, which provided daylight and access to the undercroft.
The reconstruction of the station was recorded in the BBC Television documentary series The Eight Hundred Million Pound Railway Station broadcast as six 30-minute episodes between 13‒28 November 2007.
Rebuilding
By early 2004, the eastern side of the extended train shed was complete, and the Barlow train shed was closed to trains. From 12 April 2004, Midland Mainline trains terminated at an interim station occupying the eastern part of the extension immediately adjacent to the entrance.
As part of the construction of the western side of the new train shed that now began, an underground "box" was constructed to house new platforms for Thameslink, which at this point ran partially under the extended station. In order for this to happen, the existing Thameslink tunnels between Kentish Town and King's Cross Thameslink were closed between 11 September 2004 and 15 May 2005 while the works were carried out. Thameslink services from the north terminated in the same platforms as the Midland Main Line trains, while services from the south terminated at King's Cross Thameslink.
When the lines were re-opened, the new station box was still only a bare concrete shell and could not take passengers. Thameslink trains reverted to their previous route but ran through the station box without stopping. The budget for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link works did not include work on the fitting out of the station, as these works had originally been part of the separate Thameslink 2000 works programme. Despite lobbying by rail operators who wished to see the station open at the same time as St Pancras International, the Government failed to provide additional funding to allow the fit-out works to be completed immediately following the line blockade. Eventually, on 8 February 2006, Alistair Darling, the Secretary of State for Transport, announced £50 million funding for the fit-out of the station, plus another £10–15 million for the installation of associated signalling and other lineside works.
The fit-out works were designed by Chapman Taylor and Arup (Eurostar) and completed by ISG Interior Plc Contractors collaborating with Bechtel as Project Managers. The client was London and Continental Railways who were advised by Hitachi Consulting.
In 2005, planning consent was granted for a refurbishment of the former Midland Grand Hotel building, with plans to refurbish and extend it as a hotel and apartment block. The newly refurbished hotel opened to guests on 21 March 2011 with a grand opening ceremony on 5 May.
By the middle of 2006, the western side of the train shed extension was completed. The rebuilding cost was in the region of £800 million,[69] up from an initial estimate of £310 million.
Opening
In early November 2007, Eurostar conducted a testing programme in which some 6000 members of the public were involved in passenger check-in, immigration control and departure trials, during which the "passengers" each made three return journeys out of St Pancras to the entrance to the London tunnel. On 4 September 2007, the first test train ran from Paris Gare du Nord to St Pancras. Children's illustrator Quentin Blake was commissioned to provide a huge mural of an "imaginary welcoming committee" as a disguise for one of the remaining ramshackle Stanley Building South immediately opposite the station exit.
St Pancras was officially re-opened as St Pancras International, and the High Speed 1 service was launched on 6 November 2007 by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Services were extended to Rotterdam and Amsterdam in April 2018.
During an elaborate opening ceremony, actor Timothy West, as Henry Barlow, addressed the audience, which was also entertained by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the singers Lemar and Katherine Jenkins. In a carefully staged set piece, the first Class 395 train and two Class 373 trains arrived through a cloud of dry ice in adjacent platforms within seconds of each other. During the ceremony, Paul Day's large bronze statue The Meeting Place was also unveiled. At a much smaller ceremony on 12 November 2007, the bronze statue of John Betjeman by sculptor Martin Jennings was unveiled by Betjeman's daughter, the author Candida Lycett Green. Public service by Eurostar train via High Speed 1 started on 14 November 2007. In a small ceremony, station staff cut a ribbon leading to the Eurostar platforms. In the same month, services to the East Midlands were transferred to a new franchisee, East Midlands Trains. The low-level Thameslink platforms opened on 9 December 2007, replacing King's Cross Thameslink.
St Pancras has retained a reputation of having one of the most recognisable facades of all the London termini, and known as the "cathedral of the railways". In Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations by Simon Jenkins, the station was one of only ten to be awarded five stars. The station has bilingual signs in French and English, one of the few in England to do so. It was considered Europe's most passenger-friendly railway station in an index created in 2020 by the Consumer Choice Center.
Opening of Canal Tunnels
From December 2018, as part of the Thameslink programme, services from the East Coast Main Line/Great Northern Route, also part of the Govia Thameslink Railway franchise, were linked to the Thameslink route, diverting trains previously terminating at Kings Cross into the Thameslink platforms at St Pancras and then through central London to Sussex and Kent. This link was made possible by the construction of a pair of single-track tunnels, named the Canal Tunnels. These tunnels start immediately off the St Pancras Thameslink platforms, dive under the Regent's Canal, and join the East Coast Main Line where the North London Line and High Speed 1 pass over the top.
Twinning
In October 2019, St Pancras was twinned with the Gare de Bordeaux Saint-Jean, Bordeaux, France. The association was made in the hope that a high-speed service could connect the two stations and was announced at a ceremony headed by Claude Solard, Director General of SNCF.
(Wikipedia)
St Pancras ist einer der Hauptbahnhöfe von London. Er befindet sich im Stadtbezirk London Borough of Camden zwischen dem Neubau der British Library im Westen und dem Bahnhof King’s Cross im Osten. Im Jahr 2013 nutzten ihn 24,298 Millionen Fahrgäste.
Der Bahnhof liegt in der TfL-Tarifzone 1 und ist Ausgangspunkt der Züge auf der Midland Main Line. Er gilt als architektonisches Meisterwerk des viktorianischen Zeitalters. Die Haupthalle, nach ihrem Erbauer William Henry Barlow auch Barlow Trainshed genannt, war zur Zeit ihrer Errichtung die größte aus einem einzigen Bogen bestehende Halle der Welt. Davor steht St Pancras Chambers, das frühere Midland Grand Hotel, eines der beeindruckendsten Beispiele der neugotischen Architektur, entworfen von George Gilbert Scott.
Betrieb
St Pancras ist die Londoner Endstation der Schnellzüge der Gesellschaft East Midlands Railway. Diese verkehren in die East Midlands und nach Yorkshire, inklusive Luton, Bedford, Leicester, Nottingham, Derby und Sheffield. Vereinzelte Züge verkehren auch nach Burton-upon-Trent, Leeds, Barnsley, Scarborough und York.
Die Bahnhofshalle war bis November 2007 wegen umfangreichen Umbauarbeiten geschlossen. Vom 12. April 2004 bis zum 14. Juli 2006 hielten die Züge in einem temporären Bahnhof weiter nördlich. Die Bahnsteige im temporären Bahnhof waren über Aufzüge und Rolltreppen erreichbar. Unter der Haupthalle befindet sich der Zugang zur U-Bahn-Station King’s Cross St. Pancras.
Die Gleise 11 bis 14 sind für die 225 km/h schnellen Regionalzüge nach Kent vorgesehen und während der Olympischen Spiele 2012 auch für den Pendelzug Olympic Javelin zum Bahnhof Stratford International mit dem Olympischen Dorf und den Sportstätten.
Die Gleise 5 bis 10 sind Teil der Strecke High Speed 1 (HS1), gehören der Union Railway (North), und werden von National Rail nur verwaltet. Für diese Gleise ist das Zugsicherungssystem KVB erforderlich.
Die Gleise 1 bis 4 dienen als Endstation der Midland Main Line und werden ganz von Network Rail verwaltet. Hier sind Zugsicherung und Signalisierung nach britischen Standards erforderlich.
Die internationalen Bahnsteige mit den Gleisen 5 bis 10 sind 760 Millimeter über Schienenoberkante (SOK) hoch, die für den nationalen Verkehr vorgesehenen Bahnsteige haben die britische Standardhöhe von 915 mm über SOK.
Eine neue Station für die Thameslink-Züge, die teilweise neben und teilweise unter den zu HS1 gehörenden Gleisen liegt, ersetzte am 9. Dezember 2007 den Bahnhof King’s Cross Thameslink. Auch Zugänge zu den Stationen der London Underground wurden neu gestaltet.
Internationaler Verkehr
Seit 14. November 2007 ist St Pancras neuer Endpunkt des High Speed 1, auf dem die Eurostar-Züge nach Paris und Brüssel verkehren. Diese nutzen die zentralen Gleise 5 bis 10 in der Haupthalle. Da für den Eurostar besondere Sicherheitsvorkehrungen gelten, ist es notwendig, dass die Passagiere vor dem Besteigen des Zuges mit ihrem Ticket einchecken und eine Personen- und Gepäckkontrolle durchlaufen, ähnlich wie an einem Flughafen. Der hierfür vorgesehene Check-in-Bereich wurde unterhalb der Bahnsteige eingerichtet, die sechs Meter über dem Straßenniveau liegen. Ursprünglich wurde das Gewölbe zur Lagerung von Bierfässern genutzt, die von Burton-upon-Trent hierher transportiert worden waren. Die vom Eurostar genutzten Gleise sind durch Glaswände vom Rest des Bahnhofs abgetrennt und nur mit Rolltreppen und Aufzügen aus dem Check-in-Bereich erreichbar.
Am 19. Oktober 2010 fuhr erstmals ein Intercity-Express in den Bahnhof ein, nachdem er den Eurotunnel durchquert hatte. Am 14. Juni 2013 erteilte die Groupe Eurotunnel S.A. der Deutschen Bahn die Genehmigung für die Durchfahrt im Rahmen eines Testprogrammes. Es war geplant, ICE-Verbindungen zwischen London und Köln, Frankfurt und auch Amsterdam anzubieten, was jedoch zurückgestellt wurde. Stattdessen sollen für diese Relationen längerfristig die neuen Eurostar-Triebzüge zum Einsatz kommen.
Geschichte
Der Bau des Bahnhofs geht auf die Initiative der Midland Railway zurück. Vor den 1860er-Jahren besaß diese Gesellschaft zahlreiche Strecken in den Midlands und nördlich von London, jedoch keine eigene Strecke in die Hauptstadt. Seit 1840 verkehrten die Midland-Züge zwischen einer Verzweigung bei Rugby und London auf der Strecke der London and North Western Railway. Mit dem stetigen Wachstum des Verkehrsaufkommens war diese Strecke bald überlastet und Verspätungen waren an der Tagesordnung.
Um 1845, gegen Ende der Ära des „Eisenbahnfiebers“ (railway mania), plante man eine neue Eisenbahnstrecke nach London. 1846 genehmigte das Parlament die Strecke der Great Northern Railway und 1847 jene der Midland Railway von Leicester nach Hitchin. Während die erstgenannte Strecke gebaut wurde, musste die Midland-Strecke wegen finanzieller Schwierigkeiten zurückgestellt werden. Unternehmen in Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire übten Druck aus, um die Strecke doch noch zu bauen, allen voran William Whitbread, dem 12 Prozent der betroffenen Grundstücke gehörten. 1853 genehmigte das Parlament den überarbeiteten Plan und Mitte 1857 konnte die Strecke eröffnet werden. Die Midland Railway sicherte sich für die nächsten sieben Jahre die Betriebsrechte. Die Gesellschaft verfügte nun über je eine Strecke zu den Bahnhöfen Euston und King’s Cross.
Mitte 1862 führte die beschränkte Kapazität der Zufahrtslinien zu Auseinandersetzungen zwischen der Midland Railway und der Great Northern Railway. Die Midland Railway nahm dies zum Anlass, eine eigene Zufahrtslinie zu bauen. Die Vermessungsarbeiten für die 80 Kilometer lange Strecke zwischen Bedford und London begannen im Oktober 1862. Allerdings hatte die Gesellschaft bereits 1861 damit begonnen, auf dem Gebiet der damals selbständigen Gemeinde St Pancras Grundstücke zu erwerben.
St Pancras war damals eine wenig anziehende Gegend mit Slums, einem Gaswerk, dem Regent’s Canal und einer alten Kirche mit Friedhof. Die Midland Railway wählte als Standort für den Kopfbahnhof ein Grundstück unmittelbar westlich des Bahnhofs King’s Cross. Die Grundbesitzer räumten das Gelände für £ 19.500 und vertrieben für weitere £ 200 die Hausbewohner, die keine Entschädigung erhielten. Die Kirche wurde abgetragen und 1867 Stück für Stück in Wanstead wiederaufgebaut. 1868/69 entstand für die Kirchgemeinde St Pancras ein £ 12.000 teurer Neubau in Kentish Town.
Die Planungen für den Bahnhof nahmen einige Zeit in Anspruch. Das leicht abfallende Gelände erschwerte den Bau etwas und die Direktoren der Midland Railway wollten mit dem neuen Gebäude einen bleibenden Eindruck bei den Londonern hinterlassen. Chefingenieur William Henry Barlow entwarf die Bahnhofshalle mit einem einzigen 74 Meter breiten Bogen, damals weltweit das größte Bauwerk dieser Art. Der Entwurf folgte rein ökonomischen Prinzipien, der vorhandene Raum sollte so gut wie möglich genutzt werden, ohne störende Bauelemente dazwischen. Vor der Halle war Platz für die Vorderfront mit Hotel vorgesehen, der Plan wurde schließlich Anfang 1865 genehmigt.
Für die Gestaltung der zusätzlichen Gebäude und des Hotels wurde ein Architekturwettbewerb veranstaltet. Elf Architekten reichten im August 1865 ihre Entwürfe ein. Im Januar 1866 fiel die Wahl auf ein Ziegelsteingebäude im neugotischen Stil, entworfen durch den prominenten Architekten George Gilbert Scott. Scotts Entwurf war der mit Abstand teuerste, die Baukosten betrugen £ 315.000. Doch dies war durchaus im Interesse der Midland-Railway-Direktoren, da sie mit diesem prachtvollen Gebäude alle anderen Hauptbahnhöfe übertreffen konnten. Das Dach wurde gesondert ausgeschrieben und kostete £ 117.000.
Die Bauarbeiten begannen bereits im Herbst des Jahres 1864, zunächst mit dem Bau einer temporären Brücke über den Kanal und der Räumung der Wohnsiedlungen. Die Grundsteinlegung des Bahnhofs erfolgte im Juli 1866. Am 1. Oktober 1868 konnte der Bahnhof eingeweiht werden, auch wenn er noch nicht ganz fertiggestellt war. Der erste Schnellzug nach Manchester fuhr ohne Halt bis Leicester. Dies war damals die längste Zugfahrt der Welt ohne Zwischenhalt (156 km).
Das Midland Grand Hotel wurde erst am 5. Mai 1873 eröffnet. Die Gesamtkosten für den gesamten Bahnhof betrugen schließlich £438.000. Das Hotel wurde 1935 geschlossen und danach bis Mitte der 1980er-Jahre als Bürogebäude genutzt. Danach diente es mehrmals als Schauplatz für Film- und Fernsehaufnahmen, unter anderem Batman Begins und das erste Video der Spice Girls.
In den 1960er-Jahren galt St. Pancras als überflüssig, und es wurden mehrere Versuche unternommen, ihn zu schließen und das Hotel (damals unter dem Namen St. Pancras Chambers bekannt) abzureißen. Diese Versuche riefen starken und erfolgreichen Widerstand hervor.
1988 wurde der Snow-Hill-Tunnel wiedereröffnet, der Teil einer wichtigen Nord-Süd-Verbindung durch das Londoner Zentrum wurde. Die Verbindung wird von Thameslink, einem neu geschaffenen Nahverkehrssystem, genutzt. Die Thameslink-Züge ersetzten bestehende Nahverkehrszüge und unterquerten St Pancras ohne Halt über die Widened Lines, sodass der Bahnhof nur noch von wenigen Zügen bedient wurde, die auf der Midland Main Line nach Leicester, Nottingham und Sheffield verkehrten, zusammen mit einigen Vorortzügen nach Bedford und Luton. Diese machten nur wenige Züge pro Stunde aus und lasteten den Bahnhof nur gering aus. Seit 2007 bedient Thameslink den Bahnhof, die Züge halten jedoch nicht in der Haupthalle, sondern in einem unterirdischen Durchgangsbahnhof.
Der ursprüngliche Plan für den High Speed 1 sah einen Tunnel vom Südosten Londons zu einer unterirdischen Endstation in der Nähe von King's Cross vor. Eine späte Planänderung, die hauptsächlich auf den Wunsch des damaligen Umweltministers Michael Heseltine nach einer Stadterneuerung im Osten Londons zurückzuführen ist, führte jedoch zu einer Änderung der Streckenführung, wobei die neue Strecke von Osten her an London herangeführt wurde. Von dort sollte die North London Line genutzt werden sollte, die unmittelbar nördlich am Bahnhof vorbeiführt. Somit sollte doch St Pancras neue Endstation werden.
Die Idee, die North London Line zu nutzen, wurde 1994 vom Verkehrsminister John MacGregor als „schwierig zu konstruieren und umweltschädlich“ abgelehnt. Die Idee, den Bahnhof St. Pancras als Endbahnhof zu benutzen, wurde jedoch beibehalten, wenn auch nun durch 20 km neue Tunnel über Stratford mit Dagenham verbunden.
Die London and Continental Railways (LCR), gegründet zur Zeit der Privatisierung von British Rail, wurde 1996 von der Regierung ausgewählt, um St. Pancras wieder aufzubauen, HS1 zu bauen und den britischen Anteil am Eurostar-Betrieb zu übernehmen. Die LCR war seit der Privatisierung Eigentümerin des Bahnhofs St. Pancras, um die Sanierung des Bahnhofs zu ermöglichen.
Für das später leer stehende Gebäude wurde 2005 eine entsprechende Planungsgenehmigung erteilt. Im Mai 2011 eröffnete die Marriott-Gruppe schließlich das Hotel wieder unter dem Namen St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel.
Verschiedenes
Die Bahnhofszenen in den Harry-Potter-Filmen wurden teilweise im Bahnhof St Pancras gedreht.
In Douglas Adams’ Roman Der lange dunkle Fünfuhrtee der Seele ist der Bahnhof das „irdische“ Gegenstück Walhalls.
(Wikipedia)
A cheap burger
Served super fast
With flash
A 1963 McDonald's sign from an Alabama franchise is on display at the American Sign Museum. It tells us the origins of how McDonald's became the bellwether quick service restaurant it is today.
Calculating for inflation, what would that 15 cent burger cost in 2016?
It would be $1.18, which is actually a bit more costly than the dollar value hamburger that can be bought at a McDonald's franchise in 2016.
The Speedee mascot, with his hamburger face and chef's hat, was used from 1948 through the early 1960s. He was eventually replaced by the more child-friendly Ronald McDonald as the clownish mascot and eventually by the Golden Arches as the brand's symbol. But before Ronald, Hamburglar, and Grimace were ever born, there was Speedee and his Speedee Service System.
Replacing an earlier scanned photo with a better version 11-Jan-19.
British Airways Express operated by Brymon Airways.
Named: "Northumberland" (left side) / "Drigantes" (right side).
First flown with the deHavilland Canada test registration C-GEOA, this aircraft was delivered to Brymon Airways as G-BRYI in Mar-91. Brymon was merged with Birmingham European Airways to form Brymon European Airways in Nov-92.
It didn't last long, the company was split again in May-93 with the jet aircraft going to Maersk Air UK and the turboprop aircraft being transferred to Brymon Aviation, now owned by British Airways.
The aircraft was operated for British Airways Express by Brymon in full BA livery from Jul-93. In Mar-02, Brymon was merged with another BA franchisee, British Regional Airlines to form British Airways CitiExpress.
The aircraft was sold back to Bombardier Inc as C-FFBG in Jun-05 and was stored at North Bay, ON, Canada. In Mar-06 it was leased to Air Southwest (UK) as G-WOWE. It was briefly wet-leased to Aurigny Air Services (Guernsey, CI, UK) in May/Jun-11.
In Jul-11 Air Southwest was taken over by Eastern Airways (UK). The aircraft was returned to Bombardier Inc in Jan-12 and stored (at Calgary, AB, Canada ?). It was sold to Avmax Aviation Services as C-GRUR in Sep-12 and leased to CMA Central Mountain Air in Nov-12.
It was withdrawn from service in Nov-17 and stored at Calgary, AB, Canada. It was returned to Avmax in Jun-19 and remained stored until it was ferried to Luanda, Angola in early Dec-22. It was leased to Fly Angola as D2-FDX later that month and continues in service.
However, as of 12-Jul-24, the aircraft continues to appear on Flightradar 24 as C-GRUR! I assume the box has never been changed to a new ADSB code... Updated 12-Jul-24.
This bus stop at the foot of the Canongate in Edinburgh has been equipped with an updated Real Time Passenger Information system which is being tested. The city and Lothian Buses introduced the city’s original RTPI system - branded BusTracker circa 2004 - but is well overdue for replacement.
To make this upload more interesting, I have added some Edinburgh transport chronology:-
Sedan chair makes first appearance in Edinburgh 1687
Edinburgh to Queen’s Ferry Road designated as turnpike road 1751
London to Edinburgh mail coach journey advertised as “10 days in summer, 12 days in winter.” 1754
Ferry Road constructed on its present line 1758
The first North Bridge completed 1772
South Bridge built 1785-1788
First wet dock (East Dock) at Leith opened 1806
John Rennie’s Musselburgh New Bridge opened 1808
First steamboat on the Forth 1812
West Dock completed 1817
Junction Bridge in Leith built 1818
Regent or Regent’s Bridge carrying Waterloo Place over Calton Road completed 1819
Trinity Chain Pier opened 1821
First regular steamship service between Leith and London 1821
Union Canal opened 1822
Second Cramond Brig opened 1824
Leith Dock Commission established 1826
Telford’s Pathhead (or Lothian) Bridge over Tyne Water built 1827-1831
George IV Bridge built 1827-1836
The Mound completed 1830
Glenesk Viaduct over River North Esk on Edinburgh & Dalkeith Railway completed 1831
Telford’s Dean Bridge completed 1832
Horse drawn passenger service inaugurated on E&DR from St Leonards 1832
New Western Approach (later Johnston Terrace) opened 1836
Granton Pier, originally Victoria Jetty, opened 1838
Edinburgh & Glasgow Rly opened from Haymarket to Glasgow via Falkirk 1842
Railway opened from Scotland Street to Trinity 1842
Granton to Burntisland ferry service opens 1844
Rival schemes put forward for atmospheric railways between Edinburgh and Leith 1845
North British Railway opens to Berwick-upon-Tweed 1846
E&GR extended from Haymarket to Waverley 1847
Scotland Street tunnel and Canal Street station opened 1847
Musselburgh (town centre) station opened 1847
Last mail coach run from Edinburgh to London 1847
Caledonian Railway opened from Carlisle to Lothian Road station via Carstairs 1848
Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway purchase the Union Canal 1848
First trains between Edinburgh and Hawick 1849
Edinburgh and Bathgate Railway opened 1849
Edinburgh and Northern Railway introduce train ferry service for freight wagons between Granton and Burntisland 1851
Victoria Dock at Leith opened 1852
West Pier at Leith opened 1852
Peebles Railway opened 1855
Melville Drive opened 1859
Cockburn Street built to improve access to Waverley from the Old Town 1859-1864
GNR, NER and NBR introduce common pool of passenger carriages (East Coast Joint Stock) on East Coast route 1861
NBR complete Waverley Route to Carlisle 1862
Winchburgh railway accident, 17 killed, 1862
East Coast companies introduce Special Scotch Express Edinburgh to London King’s Cross (later the Flying Scotsman) 1862
Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway taken over by NBR 1865
NBR divert Granton trains via Abbeyhill Jcn and Leith Walk 1868
Ratho/Dalmeny branch railway (1866) extended to South Queensferry 1868
CR open Cleland and Midcalder cut off 1869
NBR open Abbeyhill and Junction Road stations 1869
Albert Dock opened 1869
Tramways Act 1870
CR replace Lothian Road station with new terminus slightly further north and rename it Princes Street 1870
Portobello Pier opened 1871
Through trains to Glasgow via Bathgate 1871
First horse trams (Haymarket to Bernard Street (Leith) started by Edinburgh Street Tramways Co 1871
Penicuik Railway opened 1872
NBR introduce first sleeping car service in GB between Glasgow, Edinburgh and London 1873
Colinton New Bridge opened c.1874
Balerno branch railway opened 1874
Victoria Swing Bridge opened at Leith 1874
Tramway opened from Waterloo Place to Portobello 1875
Through trains to St Pancras via Waverley Route and Midland Railway’s new Settle and Carlisle Line 1876
CR start passenger service to Leith 1879
Edinburgh Dock opened 1881
Forth Bridge Railway Company formed by NBR/NER/GNR/MR 1881
Edinburgh Street Tramways Co trial steam tramway engines on Portobello route 1881/2
Forth Bridge construction begins 1883
Roads and Bridges Act ends turnpike roads system and tolls 1883
South Suburban railway opened 1884
Galloway Saloon Steam Packet company formed 1886
Galloway steamers build wooden pier at South Queensferry town harbour 1886
First issues of Murray’s monthly Edinburgh timetable diaries 1886
NBR open new and improved station at Portobello 1887
Belford Bridge opened 1887
NBR open Craiglockhart station 1887
First cable tram route (Edinburgh Northern Tramways Co, Hanover St to Goldenacre) 1888
Forth Bridge and connecting railways opened 1890
ENTCo open Stockbridge cable route from Frederick Street to Comely Bank 1890
CR propose railway under Princes Street and Calton Hill to Leith 1890
CR and NBR both open temporary Exhibition stations to serve Edinburgh Exhibition of the Arts, Sciences and Industries 1890
NBR open Easter Road and Piershill stations 1891
Waverley expansion 1892-1902
Lessee of Edinburgh tramways (exc Leith) changes to Edinburgh & District Tramways Co in 1894
Second Princes Street Station opened by CR 1894
CR open their Barnton branch from Craigleith to Cramond Brig (in 1903 renamed Barnton) 1894
NBR open resited Haymarket MPD west of Russell Road 1894/5
The new Haymarket (South) tunnel completed 1895
NBR open Powderhall station 1895
First motor car driven through Edinburgh 1896
Burgh of Portobello absorbed by Edinburgh 1896
Second (the present) North Bridge opened 1897
Booking Hall opened at Waverley 1897
NBR open second Calton Tunnel 1897
Turnhouse station opened 1897
New swing bridge opened at Bernard Street replacing the earlier bridge 1898
NBR open new “suburban station” at Waverley 1898
Norman MacDonald’s Edinburgh Autocar Company introduced motor wagonette service GPO to Haymarket 1899
Edinburgh & District Tramways start their first cable trams 1899
NBR acquires former Waterloo Hotel as head office 1899
Dalry Road station opened by CR 1900
Jeffrey Street footbridge over east end of Waverley opened 1900
First Sunday trams 1901
NBR open branch line to Corstorphine 1902
First pedestrian fatality as a result of being knocked down by motor vehicle in Edinburgh 1902
Bonnington Bridge built replacing 1812 structure 1902/3
NBR open Leith Central station 1903
Driving licences introduced 1903
Musselburgh & District Electric Light & Traction Co. Ltd open tramway from Joppa to Levenhall 1904
Imperial Dock opened 1904
First Leith Corporation electric trams 1905
Scottish Motor Traction Co Ltd starts first motor bus service Mound to Corstorphine 1906
Last horse tram (Tollcross to Colinton Rd) 1907
John Croall and Sons introduce first motor taxis in Edinburgh 1907
Last extension of cable tramway network in Edinburgh - the Broughton St to Canonmills line 1908
NBR open Newtongrange station 1908
NBR open temporary station at Balgreen to serve Scottish National Exhibition at Saughton Park 1908
Hailes Platform on CR Balerno branch opened 1908
Musselburgh tramway extended from Levenhall to Port Seton 1909
EDT open electric tramway Ardmillan Tce to Slateford 1910
NBR introduce summer Lothian Coast Express from Glasgow Queen Street to Gullane/North Berwick/Dunbar 1912
NBR open Scotland’s first Control Centre, 1913
NBR open carriage sidings at Craigentinny 1914
Ratho train crash kills 12, 1917
Edinburgh Corporation start running trams directly 1919
Corporation starts first bus tours 1919
NBR take over working of the Queensferry Passage 1920
Edinburgh absorbs Cramond, Corstorphine, Colinton, Leith and Liberton, 1920
Corporation start first regular bus services 1920
Saughton station closed 1921
First ECT electric trams 1922
Tramway on Princes Street electrified 1922
ECT introduce first double deck buses (open top) 1922
Railway grouping 1923
Last cable trams (the Portobello route) withdrawn 1923
Edinburgh Corporation open Portobello Power Station 1923
ECT tracks at Joppa linked up with those of the Musselburgh company 1923
Marchmont Circle electric tram service starts 1924
Tramway extended from Seafield to King’s Road 1924
Five killed when two trains collide at Haymarket 1924
Murrayfield Stadium opened 1925
ECT open Gorgie tram depot 1925
LNER withdraw train service to Trinity and Granton 1925
George Street tramway opened 1925
First night bus services introduced by ECT 1925
Edinburgh Licensed Hackney Carriage Association 1925
Tramway extension opened to Colinton 1926
ECT open Central Garage in former Industrial Hall at Annandale Street 1926
SMT open booking and enquiry office at 45 Princes Street 1926
SMT commence through bus service to Glasgow 1926
Maybury Road opened 1927
LMS relaunch their premier Euston- Glasgow/Edinburgh service as the “Royal Scot” 1927
Edinburgh-Glasgow New Road built 1927-32
Edinburgh Corporation Tramways becomes Edinburgh Corporation Transport 1928
First traffic lights in city at Broughton St/York Pl junction 1928
Levenhall to Port Seton tramway abandoned 1928
LNER introduce third class sleeping cars 1928
LNER loco 4472 “Flying Scotsman” hauls first non stop King’s Cross to Edinburgh train service 1928
Tramway extended from Corstorphine to Drum Brae 1928
Thomson’s Tours start coach services to London 1928
SMT open New Street bus garage 1929
Railway companies invest in SMT 1929
Telford Road opened 1929
Last trains to South Queensferry Halt 1929
Tram accident at Liberton Brae 1929
LNER close Turnhouse, Winchburgh, Gogar, Kirkliston and Leith Walk stations 1930
ECT open tramway extension to Stenhouse 1930
Road Traffic Act 1930
SMT starts extended tours of several days 1931
Bowens of Musselburgh sell their bus services to SMT 1931
First edition of The Highway Code published 1931
Last trains to Aberlady and Gullane 1932
LNER withdraw passenger services from Glencorse branch 1933
ECT introduce first closed top double decker 1933
Moderne style Southern Motors garage at Causewayside c.1933
Two custom built car ferries introduced at Queensferry 1934
LNER open Balgreen Halt 1934
LMS open East Pilton Halt 1934
Driving tests introduced 1935
Tramway extended from Braids to Fairmilehead 1936
SMT concentrate departures at Saint Andrew Square 1936
Corporation tours stance opened at Waverley Bridge 1936
The Maybury Roadhouse opened 1936
Final tram extension to Maybury 1937
LNER Edinburgh to Glasgow train collides with another stationary train at Castlecary killing 35, 1937
LMS open House O’ Hill Halt on Barnton branch 1937
LNER introduce The Coronation streamlined express passenger train between King’s Cross and Edinburgh and vv 1937
LNER withdraw Granton/Burntisland ferry 1940
SMT bus inbound from Port Seton crashes head on into tramcar on Portobello Road, killing five bus passengers 1941
Dalkeith branch passenger service withdrawn 1942
Western breakwater at Leith completed 1942
Last trains to Colinton and Balerno 1943
ECT restarts city tours after the war 1946
First BEA flights to London (using Northolt) 1947
Last trains to North Leith 1947
Forth Road Bridge Order approves construction of bridge 1947
ECT start Airport bus service (initially under contract to BEA) 1947
Peak year for tram passenger numbers (nearly 193m) 1947
Railways nationalised 1948
Washout of East Coast Main Line in Berwickshire 1948
SMT nationalised 1949
BEA move booking office and town terminal to 133 George Street 1950
Third car ferry introduced on Queensferry Passage 1950
New Hailes station closed 1950
BR open Easter Road Park Halt for arriving football specials 1950
Last trains to Barnton and Penicuik 1951
Last trains call at Drumshoreland, Curriehill and Ratho 1951
SMT start hourly express coach service to Glasgow 1951
Northern Roadways start overnight service to London 1951
Forth Ferries run short lived car ferry service between Granton and Burntisland 1951/2
Corporation resolves to abandon tramways completely within three years 1952
Corporation permits external adverts on trams and buses 1952
Last passenger trains to Leith Central 1952
First international flights from Turnhouse Airport (to Dublin) 1952
ECT close Gorgie tram depot 1953
BR introduce summer weekly “Starlight Special” overnight trains Waverley to London Marylebone @ 70/- return 1953
BEA Edinburgh to London flights move from Northolt to Heathrow 1954
Last trams to Portobello, Musselburgh and Levenhall 1954
Longstone bus garage opened by ECT 1955
Leith Dock Commission cease to open Bernard Street swing bridge to navigation 1955
Millerhill station closed 1955
Withdrawal of Colinton trams 1955
British Transport Historical Records open office in Edinburgh 1955
Remaining Glasgow trains via Bathgate withdrawn 1956
Fourth car ferry joins Queensferry Passage 1956
New passenger terminal opened at Turnhouse Airport 1956
Last first generation electric trams 1956
First diesel trains to Glasgow 1957
ECT relocate head office from St. James Square to 14 Queen Street 1957
SOL open Saint Andrew Square Bus Station 1957
Many local rail services converted to diesel operations 1958
Jeffrey Street footbridge over east end of Waverley closed 1958
Construction of Forth Road Bridge begins 1958
BR introduce summer daytime car carrier service Waverley to London (Holloway) 1960
East Fortune becomes temporary Edinburgh Airport for 4 months (96000 pax )owing to runway strengthening at Turnhouse 1961
SMT start The Transatlantic Express service to Prestwick 1961
The new Bernard Street concrete bridge opened 1961
Last trains to Bonnyrigg and Peebles 1962
Last trains to Leith North 1962
SOL rebuild and extend Musselburgh depot 1962
First parking meters introduced on George Street and Queen Street 1962
ECT open their new Marine Garage 1962
South Sub trains withdrawn 1962
BEA move sales office to 135 Princes Street 1962
Beeching Report published 1963
Loganair start first scheduled service Dundee to Edinburgh 1963
ECT open information bureau at top of Waverley Bridge 1964
Eastern Scottish fleetname introduced by SOL 1964/5
New A90 dual carriageway Cramond Brig to Queensferry 1964
Queensferry Passage closed 1964
Forth Road Bridge (cost £19.5m) opened, first direct buses to Fife 1964
Scotland’s first motorway - M90 Admiralty to Duloch in south Fife plus M823 spur bypassing Rosyth 1964
Castle Terrace multi-storey car park opened 1964
Abbeyhill, Piershill, Portobello and Joppa stations closed 1964
Musselburgh and Inveresk stations closed 1964
First modern rear engined bus bought by ECT 1965
British Rail brand name launched 1965
Princes Street Station closed along with Merchiston 1965
BEA Vickers Vanguard on flight from Edinburgh crashes at Heathrow killing 36, 1965
BUA start InterJet service to Gatwick 1966
Driver-only double deck buses legalised 1966
Motorail brand launched by BRB 1966
Edinburgh Corporation publish plans for six lane Inner Relief Road 1966
ECT close parcels service 1966
Half hourly train service Edinburgh to Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk introduced 1966.
BR close St. Margaret’s MPD 1967
Last trains to Corstorphine 1967
Forth Ports Authority replaces Leith Dock Commission 1968
Taxi cooperative, Central Radio Taxis, founded 1968
Waverley Route to Carlisle closed 1969
BR close Divisional Manager’s office at Waterloo Place 1969
ECT introduce first double decker one man operated services 1969
Scottish Transport Group HQ set up at Carron House on George Street, Edinburgh 1969
Closure of North Berwick branch refused by MoT 1969
ECT close Tollcross garage 1969
M8 opened between Whitburn and Dechmont 1969
Direct railway route to Perth closed between Cowdenbeath and Bridge of Earn via Kinross Jcn 1970
ECT employ first female driver 1970
M8 eastern section opened between Dechmont and Newbridge 1970
M9 (later M90) Kirkliston spur opened 1970
Travel Centre opened at Waverley 1970
BAA take over Edinburgh Airport 1971
Scotland’s first motorway service area opened at Harthill on M8 at cost of £650,000, 1971
Push/Pull trains to Glasgow 1971
Kingsknowe Station reopened 1971
ECT expand information bureau at Waverley Bridge to become airport bus terminal 1971
Last passenger sailings from Leith to Orkney/Shetland 1971
Traffic lights installed on Princes Street 1972
First Open Day at ECT Shrubhill 1972
Last sailings Leith to Reykjavik and Copenhagen 1972
The old A9 between Turnhouse and Boathouse Bridge closed to allow construction of the airport’s new runway 1973
Rose Street (between Castle St and Frederick St) becomes first in city to be pedestrianised 1973
Civil Aviation Act 1971 merges BEA and BOAC as British Airways 1974
First bus lane in city (Earl Grey Street, northbound) 1974
West Approach Road opened 1974
Edinburgh boundary extended to take in Queensferry, Kirkliston, Newbridge, Ratho, Currie and Balerno 1975
Edinburgh City Transport becomes Lothian Regional Transport 1975
Air Anglia launch first Edinburgh to Amsterdam flights 1975
First Leith Street footbridge erected 1975
New runway opened at Edinburgh Airport 1976
British Airways introduce the Shuttle to Heathrow 1976
LRT introduces the Ridacard season ticket 1976
New power signal box opened at Waverley 1976
SBG launch blue and white livery and “Scottish” brand on London coaches 1976
New passenger terminal at Edinburgh Airport opened 1977
SPOKES (the Lothian cycle campaign) launched 1977
BR opens Craigentinny Train Maintenance Depot 1977
HST train services from King’s Cross to Edinburgh introduced 1978/9
Townsend Thoresen run shortlived experimental sailings between Leith and Kristiansand (Norway), autumn 1978
Penmanshiel Tunnel collapse on ECML between Berwick and Dunbar 1979
Transport museum at Shrubhill closed 1979
LRT last use bus conductors 1980
Deregulation of express coach services 1980
Eastern Scottish introduce X14 Motorway Express to Glasgow 1981
Colinton bypass (3.5 miles) opened from Baberton to Fairmilehead 1981
Cotter Coachline service to London 1981
Lothian Regional Council buys disused railway routes in north Edinburgh 1981
British Rail launch low cost Nightrider train service King’s Cross to Edinburgh and Aberdeen 1982
Eastern Scottish end use of bus conductors 1982
“Innocent Railway” walkway and cyclepath opened 1982
Midcalder station renamed Kirknewton 1982
Newton’s Travel launch “Fast Class” coach service to/from Inverness 1982
British Midland start Heathrow to Edinburgh service 1983
British Airways upgrade Heathrow services to “Super Shuttle” 1983
British Rail Scotland adopt Scotrail brand (22 Sept) 1983
Stagecoach start an Edinburgh-Glasgow service 1983
ECT tram 35 moved to Blackpool 1983
Henry Robb shipyard at Leith completes two IoW ferries for Sealink (the yard’s last orders) 1983
InterCity launch Highland Chieftain between King’s Cross and Inverness via Edinburgh (581 miles) 1984
Edinburgh-Glasgow train derails W of Polmont, 13 killed, 1984
Livingston South station opened 1984
South Gyle Station opened 1985
Scottish Citylink Coaches Ltd formed 1985
Borders/East Lothian routes of Eastern Scottish pass to Lowland Scottish 1985
Edinburgh to Bathgate train service reopened 1986
ScotRail Operations Depot opened at Waverley 1986
ScotRail operate dmu shuttles between Waverley and Meadowbank Stadium during Commonwealth Games 1986
Bus services deregulated 1986
Lothian Regional Transport becomes Lothian Region Transport plc 1986
A1 Tranent and Musselburgh bypasses opened 1986
A199 Portobello bypass (Sir Harry Lauder Road) opened 1986
Eastern Scottish introduce City Sprinter minibuses 1986
Sighthill Bypass (3 miles) opened from Glasgow Road to Baberton 1986
Scott Russell Aqueduct built to carry Union Canal over the Edinburgh city bypass 1987
Wester Hailes and Curriehill stations opened /reopened 1987
Air UK replace BCal on Gatwick/Edinburgh route 1988
InterCity Sleepers concentrated on WCML and Euston 1988
Preserved Edinburgh tram 35 operates at the Glasgow Garden Festival tramway 1988
New station opened at Musselburgh 1988
Burdiehouse Bypass from Fairmilehead to Straiton opened 1988
Millerhill Bypass from Sheriffhall to Old Craighall opened 1988
Guide Friday starts Edinburgh open top bus tour followed by LRT later same year with Edinburgh Classic Tour 1989
Guide Friday start their AirBus Express to airport 1989
Stagecoach sells express operations to National Express 1989
Gilmerton Bypass opened from Straiton to Sheriffhall 1989
Eastern Scottish privatised, revives SMT fleetname 1990
Carstairs/Edinburgh link from WCML electrified 1991
East Coast Main Line electrification completed 1991
North Berwick train service electrified 1991
SBG sell Fife Scottish to Stagecoach 1991
Stagecoach Rail launched 1992
Scottish Citylink purchased by National Express 1993
Underpass opened at Gogar roundabout 1993
Guide Friday start Deep Sea World Express to North Queensferry 1993
Gyle Centre opened 1993
CERT (City of Edinburgh Rapid Transit) bus rapid transit scheme proposed c.1993
GRT buys Eastern Scottish Omnibuses (SMT) 1994
ScotRail TOC created (still BRB owned) 1994
New station opened at Wallyford 1994
M8 extended from Newbridge to City Bypass 1995
BR withdraw Sleeper/Motorail to Plymouth 1995
First EasyJet services from London Luton to Edinburgh 1995
GNER train operating company takes over ECML train services 1996
ScotRail introduce Caledonian Sleeper brand 1996
Eastbound traffic exc buses, taxis, cycles etc removed from Princes Street 1996
First carve up Eastern Scottish between Midland Bluebird and Lowland 1996
Virgin Trains start running CrossCountry and West Coast trains 1997
Underpass opened at Newbridge roundabout 1997
First merge Midland Bluebird and Lowland as First Edinburgh 1997
ScotRail privatised 1997
Priority bus lanes (“Greenways”) introduced on five arterial roads 1997
Low cost carrier Go starts Stansted/Edinburgh route 1998
LRT becomes Lothian Buses 2000
LB becomes a City Sightseeing franchisee 2000
First Edinburgh launch The Overground network in city 2000
Motorvator coach service Edinburgh to Glasgow started by Bruce Coaches and Long’s of Salsburgh 2000
Ferrytoll P+R opened in Fife 2000
Ocean Terminal Shopping Centre opened 2001
Forth Estuary Transport Authority replaces FRBJB 2001
Ryanair launch first scheduled service from EDI (to Dublin) 2001
Brunstane and Newcraighall stations opened 2002
Transport Initiatives Edinburgh formed 2002
Rosyth/Zeebrugge ferry service started by Superfast Ferries 2002
LB acquire Mac Tours and Edinburgh ops of Guide Friday 2002
Lothian revamps night bus network 2002
Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh relocates to Little France 2003
Edinburgh Bus Station opened 2003
Stagecoach start Yellow Taxibus service Dunfermline to Edinburgh 2003
Megabus started 2003
Second Leith Street footbridge (the “bendy bridge”) erected 2003
Concorde’s last visit to EDI (G-BOAE) 2003
Edinburgh Park station opened 2003
First Group takeover ScotRail franchise 2004
Edinburgh Bus Tours introduce Majestic Tour 2004
West Edinburgh 1.5k guided busway opens 2004
Continental start first daily transatlantic scheduled flight to New York/Newark 2004
Stagecoach buy the Motorvator Edinburgh Glasgow coach service 2004
Transport Scotland (agency of Scottish Government) formed 2005
Stagecoach gain 35% stake in Scottish Citylink and become managing partner 2005
Hermiston P+R opened 2005
NATS build new 57 metre high control tower at EDI 2005
Edinburgh congestion charge referendum 2005
Central Edinburgh Traffic Management Scheme 2005
SEStran (Regional Transport Partnership) formed 2005
Ingliston P+R opened 2006
Stagecoach launch Airdirect (later Jet 747) bus Inverkeithing to Edinburgh Airport in 2006
Former SMT depot/Head Office at New Street demolished 2006
Stagecoach run two week hovercraft trial between Portobello and KIrkcaldy 2007
Edinburgh Airport Rail Link cancelled by Scottish Govt 2007
First TransPennine Express replace Virgin CrossCountry on Manchester services 2007
Edinburgh Bus Tours start Bus and Boat Tour 2007
Lothian start taxibus service to/from Edinburgh Airport 2007
M9 spur (later M90) opened from Kirkliston to Queensferry 2007
Stagecoach East Scotland launch Express CityConnect brand for coach network 2007
National Express East Coast takes over InterCity East Coast franchise 2007
Tolls removed from Forth Road Bridge 2008
First Edinburgh renamed First Scotland East 2008
Sheriffhall P&R opened 2008
Wallyford P&R opened 2008
The Cunard liner QE2 makes last visit to Firth of Forth 2008
Norfolkline restart Rosyth/Zeebrugge ferry service 2009
Tramway construction begins on Princes Street 2009
The state owned East Coast train operating company replaced National Express East Coast 2009
Removal of last step entrance bus from Lothian fleet 2009
Airdrie/Bathgate railway reopened/ electrified 2010
ScotRail reintroduce local Edinburgh-Dunbar service supplementing Dunbar calls by long distance operators 2010
Waverley Steps rebuilt with canopy and escalators added 2012
British Airways takeover bmi British Midland 2012
Global Investment Partners buy Edinburgh Airport 2012
M90 intelligent transport system inc bus lane 2012
Citylinkair coach service Glasgow to Edinburgh Airport launched 2013
Haymarket Station modernised 2013
Virgin Little Red launch LHR/Edinburgh service 2013
Luxury Megabus Gold sleeper coach services introduced between London and Edinburgh/Aberdeen 2013
Transport for Edinburgh formed 2013
Modern tramway opened Airport to York Place 2014
Taxis and other motor vehicles banned from Edinburgh Waverley 2014
Virgin Trains East Coast replaces state owned East Coast on the ECML 2015
Abellio takeover ScotRail franchise 2015
Amey take over management of Forth Road Bri for Transport Scotland 2015
Bruce’s Coaches launch M8 CityXpress to/from Glasgow 2015
Serco now operating the new Caledonian Sleeper franchise 2015
Borders Railway to Tweedbank opened 2015
Borders Railway inc new stations at Shawfair and Eskbank 2015
UNESCO inscribes Forth Bridge on World Heritage Sites list 2015
Emergency closure of Forth Road Bridge, December 2015
City of Edinburgh Council starts rollout of 20mph speed limits on 80% of city streets. From 2016.
Edinburgh Gateway rail/tram interchange opened 2016
Lothian introduces new fleet for Edinburgh Bus Tours 2016
EastCoastbuses launched 2016
Lothian launch Skylink service Leith to Edinburgh Airport 2017
Queensferry Crossing opened 2017
Forth Road Bridge becomes the public transport corridor 2017
Edinburgh to Glasgow train services via Falkirk High electrified 2017
Borders Buses launched 2017
Lothiancountry brand starts with route 43 to Queensferry 2017
ScotRail open Millerhill EMU depot 2018
Lothian launch Cruiselink X99 to/from Queensferry Hawes Pier 2018
DfT Operator of Last Resort (using LNER brand) replaces VTEC on ECML 2018
Transport for Edinburgh cycle hire scheme in association with Serco launched 2018
Lothiancountry start renewed expansion into West Lothian 2018
First start Bright Bus Tours 2019
Lothian introduce ADL Enviro 400XLB tri - axle double deckers 2019
Lothian launch capped contactless payment system 2019
Edinburgh to Glasgow train services via Shotts electrified 2019
LNER introduce “Azuma” service to Edinburgh 2019
Avanti West Coast take over InterCity West Coast franchise 2019
Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown. Only critical services provided 2020
Waverley Bridge largely pedestrianised 2020
Stagecoach introduce new livery schemes 2020
Ember Core start electric coach service to Dundee 2020
Plaxton Panorama double deck coaches introduced on Citylink 900 Edinburgh to Glasgow service 2020
Flixbus start overnight coach service to London 2021
First Group launch low cost rail subsidiary, Lumo, operating between Edinburgh and London King’s Cross 2021
York Place tramstop closed 2022
ScotRail nationalised 2022
McGill’s Buses take over First Scotland East and West Lothian services rebranded Eastern Scottish, 2022
Open top bus tours move to new base at Waterloo Place 2023
New east corridor at Waverley 2023
Flixbus start Edinburgh to Aberdeen service 2023
CAVForth autonomous bus service (operated by Stagecoach) launched between Ferrytoll P+R and Edinburgh Park station 2023
TransPennine Express nationalised 2023
The former Granton Gasworks station restored 2023
Trams extended from city centre to Leith and Newhaven 2023
Caledonian Sleeper nationalised 2023.
Low Emission Zone (LEZ) established in central Edinburgh 2023
McGill’s Scotland East pull out of West Lothian 2023
McGill’s launch Bright Bus Airport Express 2024
Lothian Buses purchase Dunbar based Eve Coaches 2024
Regal Tour replaces Majestic Tour 2024
Flixbus launch Edinburgh- Glasgow service 2024
VINCI Airports acquire 50.01% of Edinburgh Airport, GIP retain remaining shareholding 2024
Bright Bus launch Bus and Boat Tour 2024
Airport buses move to Waverley Bridge 2024
Airport handles 15m passengers in year for first time 2024
Transport for Edinburgh reduced to shareholding shell company 2024
Lothian drop Skylink brand 2025
McGill’s Bright Bus Tours adopt BigBus franchise 2025
Travel Centre relocates at Waverley 2025
ScotRail abolish peak fares 2025
Transport Scotland confirm discontinuous electrification going ahead for Fife and Borders routes 2025
City council launches new bike share scheme with Voi 2025
Former Holiday Inn located at 914 SE Madison St. in Topeka,KS. The nine story hotel has been abandoned since 2005. After dropping its Holiday Inn affiliation the property was rebranded as a Days Inn and later became independently operated under the name Civic Center Inn. In its final months of operating the property was rebranded as a Red Carpet Inn although it was for such a short time that the signs for Civic Center Inn didn't even get replaced. In 2008 a proposal was made by a franchisee of Holiday Inn to renovate this motel and rebrand it as a Holiday Inn but that plan never came to fruition.
On the topic of retail reboots in Hernando… guess what else is back, back again? That’s right – Pizza Hut’s back, tell a friend! (Alright, so I’ll be completely honest here – I have absolutely zero clue what that’s from. But I’ve seen it thrown about on this site a few times before, and am currently just going with the flow in using it XD )
Hernando’s old Pizza Hut, you might recall, abruptly closed up shop back in September 2016 (a development that almost went unnoticed, given all the Kroger hubbub taking place on the lot immediately behind that building!). Since that time, the UTBAPH became what every restaurant that closes in DeSoto County transitions into – a Mexican joint – while the town itself was left Pizza Hut-less.
See, in a lot of cases where Pizza Hut closes its sit-down restaurant, it will relocate elsewhere in town to a new, carryout-only location. Unfortunately for Hernando, that wasn’t the case here. (On the plus side though, our former Pizza Hut was also supposed to lose its recognizable hut roof post-closure, but we were spared that – so I guess those two even each other out :P ) Now, however, Pizza Hut has made its long-awaited (maybe? I dunno, I don’t eat Pizza Hut XD ) return! Two years late, but hey, who’s counting :P
I saw this brand new exterior signing gracing the façade of 1218 Commerce Street on October 28th, and immediately rushed over here to take a picture. Perhaps one reason Pizza Hut never relocated back in 2016 is because there weren’t any particularly suitable spots for them to open up in, but since that time, this building was built new – that’s right, this is the same overall structure housing our relocated AT&T store next door, out of frame to the left. So the Pizza Hut franchisee (same one as before, per a little research) decided to take advantage of the opportunity and reopen in Hernando, in this relatively new building. Pretty cool when things work out like that!
The restaurant celebrated its grand opening the weekend before Thanksgiving, with signs still littered all around town promoting the “new location” across from Walmart. I’ll have some more pics from here in the future.
Pizza Hut // 1218 E Commerce St, Hernando, MS 38632
(c) 2018 Retail Retell
These places are public so these photos are too, but just as I tell where they came from, I'd appreciate if you'd say who :)
A recently vacated Burger King located at the Ramapo Valley Road (US-202) junction in Oakland, New Jersey.
Opened, judging by its look, sometime in the late 1970s or early 80s, gives evidence of its vintage by a very rare road sign -- and one that may be one of a very few left in the country that feature the chain's iconic classic 1970s logo that had survived for decades here at this recently departed franchisee.
Had closed due to franchisee bankruptcy during 2020 covid restrictions. A new franchisee took over in 2023.
Olean, NY. March 2023.
If you would like to use THIS picture in any sort of media elsewhere (such as newspaper or article), please send me a Flickrmail or send me an e-mail at natehenderson6@gmail.com.
Former Howard Johnson's Restaurant located at 7590 Clayton Rd. in Richmond Heights,MO. The franchisee of this location ceased their affiliation with HJ in 1985 and renamed their establishment Layton's Restaurant. The Giessow family had operated this HJ location since 1959 up until their retirement on June 30th 2004. The Giessow's kept this property remarkably intact and retained numerous holdovers from HoJo's up until the day the closed the restaurant. The orange roof was removed in the late 1980s and the exterior was slightly altered soon thereafter. The interior of the restaurant retained numerous original fixtures dating back to when the restaurant opened for business back in 1955! I had a talk with a landscaper working on the property who said there has been a bitter family dispute over the land where the once successful restaurant is located. He stated that his company comes by every week to keep the property maintained and that the parking lot was repaved in 2017 yet the restaurant is still vacant. It is remarkable and somewhat eerie to see such an intact HJ property sitting empty yet fully intact with the daily specials still written on a whiteboard and even a few original HJ Ice Cream dishes on the dairy bar!