Today I worked as a conductor on Southampton 45. A customer told me of two wartime slogans he remebered on London trams and buses:'Multiply the paper stocks'
'Put me in the ticket box'
and
'I trust you'll padon this correction '
'That stuff is there for your protection'.
The first slogan is asking for used tickets to be collected for waste paper and the second refers to the masking put on windows to protect from bomb blasts.
The trams in service today were Oporto 273 (seen at Stevenson Place), Southampton 45 (at Town End), and Paisley 68 (at Wakebridge). My assessment is that most customers rode on all three trams and enjoyed their day at the Museum.
On Southampton 45 most cusomers rode upstairs and were not frightened of the sunshine. Look at the pictures; our customers like to ride upstairs on open cars and one very different alternative adds to the experience.
Finally note that on the first week of the school summer holidays (ie peak season), Woodland Refreshments are/is closed.
Today the Museum was invaded by Minis but they all seemed to be more modern than WTY 894 that I used to own many years ago. This had the small engine and the long gear lever. It used to jump out of gear coming up the hill from Bull Bridge to Crich.
