What about the great and not so great laybys and rest stops past and present around Oxon? Some of my favourites were Barnard Gate (old A40), and an old section of the A361 near Filkins (Burford bound, it’s on the left and is actually a road into a farm).
Not so favourites include Forest Hill A40 Westbound (don’t re-tie your shoe laces in those toilets!) and B.S Brians tea van near Lechlade; If you stop there, prepare for 45 minutes of non-stop “I did this, that and this on Earthline…”
Having said that, stop there, buy nowt and be satisfied knowing you’re winding him up no end!
Muckaway:
What about the great and not so great laybys and rest stops past and present around Oxon? Some of my favourites were Barnard Gate (old A40), and an old section of the A361 near Filkins (Burford bound, it’s on the left and is actually a road into a farm).
Not so favourites include Forest Hill A40 Westbound (don’t re-tie your shoe laces in those toilets!) and B.S Brians tea van near Lechlade; If you stop there, prepare for 45 minutes of non-stop “I did this, that and this on Earthline…”
Having said that, stop there, buy nowt and be satisfied knowing you’re winding him up no end!
I went down the A40 about 1 30pm on Wednesday Nathan, and there was no Asmed at Burford!!! Not that I missed him I don’t use any of them, I haven’t for years, and haven’t had the ■■■■■ either. 
altitude:
Muckaway:
What about the great and not so great laybys and rest stops past and present around Oxon? Some of my favourites were Barnard Gate (old A40), and an old section of the A361 near Filkins (Burford bound, it’s on the left and is actually a road into a farm).
Not so favourites include Forest Hill A40 Westbound (don’t re-tie your shoe laces in those toilets!) and B.S Brians tea van near Lechlade; If you stop there, prepare for 45 minutes of non-stop “I did this, that and this on Earthline…”
Having said that, stop there, buy nowt and be satisfied knowing you’re winding him up no end!
I went down the A40 about 1 30pm on Wednesday Nathan, and there was no Asmed at Burford!!! Not that I missed him I don’t use any of them, I haven’t for years, and haven’t had the [zb] either.
I saw you looking wistfully at the snack van at Letton yesterday John,wishing you had time to stop.
Dave the Renegade:
altitude:
Muckaway:
What about the great and not so great laybys and rest stops past and present around Oxon? Some of my favourites were Barnard Gate (old A40), and an old section of the A361 near Filkins (Burford bound, it’s on the left and is actually a road into a farm).
Not so favourites include Forest Hill A40 Westbound (don’t re-tie your shoe laces in those toilets!) and B.S Brians tea van near Lechlade; If you stop there, prepare for 45 minutes of non-stop “I did this, that and this on Earthline…”
Having said that, stop there, buy nowt and be satisfied knowing you’re winding him up no end!
I went down the A40 about 1 30pm on Wednesday Nathan, and there was no Asmed at Burford!!! Not that I missed him I don’t use any of them, I haven’t for years, and haven’t had the [zb] either.
I saw you looking wistfully at the snack van at Letton yesterday John,wishing you had time to stop.
Never use them Dave.
I found a fiver on a building site in Witney, so me and another driver thought we’d buy lunch at “Fat Ladies’” near Eynsham. It was so greasy it nearly slid off the plate 
Never bought food at one since.
Does anyone remember Normans’ tea van just down from the Evenlode pub? It’s changed hands several times since he had it and there seems to be less drivers using it now, but a few years back loads of Smiths drivers would use it. Several would drive out of their way to get to it (pre trackers) and for those who didn’t go in, we’d see faces peering out of the smokey windows looking to see who was going by (blasting their air horns if it was some kid in a 3000 Foden ).
Muckaway:
I found a fiver on a building site in Witney, so me and another driver thought we’d buy lunch at “Fat Ladies’” near Eynsham. It was so greasy it nearly slid off the plate
Does anyone remember Normans’ tea van just down from the Evenlode pub? It’s changed hands several times since he had it and there seems to be less drivers using it now, but a few years back loads of Smiths drivers would use it. Several would drive out of their way to get to it (pre trackers) and for those who didn’t go in, we’d see faces peering out of the smokey windows looking to see who was going by (blasting their air horns if it was some kid in a 3000 Foden
There are good one’s mate, but sadly there outnumbered by ■■■■ holes, There’s three I can remember off hand that did there best to poison me, Jock that had the one at Burford where Ashmad is now, one at juction 30 on the M1, and one at the Bath junction on the M4. To be honest I always have plenty of grub in the lorry, I have to have a break so I get my own. I’m not paying £1 50 to £2 00 for a cup of weak tea and listen to some prat that has never been more than 50 miles from where he lives, telling you he’s just packed up doing Middle East as he’s fed up with it 
Good luck to the good one’s they are doing they’re best for the guys that need them.
Not an old firm but Andy Crockett runs a nice fleet of tippers 5x 8ws (Dafs, Fodens and a new MAN) and a 6w Scania. Not signwritten sadly but most are either in Hanson blue (2 with no signwriting) or in full Hanson livery. My favourite’s the T reg Foden (his first) that was restored after it went over while tipping. I would of course say that one’s my favourite as it’s an 85 Cabbed Foden and 'cos my father in law repaired her.
If you want a driver, Andy… .
…Or make Mr Smith an offer for his 02 reg one
Hi Nathan , didnt Andy work on Smiths then he drove a mint Volvo for another owner driver , Andy knows me , we use to work on a sunday delivering papers .
JAKEY:
Hi Nathan , didnt Andy work on Smiths then he drove a mint Volvo for another owner driver , Andy knows me , we use to work on a sunday delivering papers .
He did Steve, then he worked for Steve Wall on an ARC/Hanson FL10. Not sure if he drove the ERF that Walls’ ran too.
Andys’ T reg is working for us today, loaded it this morning and certainly doesn’t look its’ age.
Does anyone remember if John Raymonds’ had a yard in Oxon as I remember their F10s pulling Rockwool trailers a lot around here. One of their drivers used to park his F10 along Hailey Road not far from where the BT depot was. Had the '90s embellishments like chrome grille bits and flags strung across the windscreen. This driver was killed sadly in an accident involving a trailer in a yard up North, I’d say mid '90s and his grave is not far from my grandparents.
More modern recollections of Raymonds are of them playing bang the trailers and shout loudly, in Swindon Truckstop.
Her are chris
Anyone remember the old quarry in Bladon? Looked on ‘net last night ( ouldn’t get on Trucknet) and apparently, opened 1931 by a bloke called Tolley. Produced building stone but wasn’t a very good grade and shut in early ‘50s. One of our drivers remembers it being filled and finished off by a plant hire firm associated with Benfield and Loxley (Cowley builders). My wifes’ great uncles were Bladons’ last farriers and used the old workshops and sheds (behind the now demolished village hall). I remember being told bottle hunters would snoop about the old landfill. There’s also an old Commer horsebox rotting away in there with a tree growing through it.
For Blue Circle fans, a tour of the Shipton on Cherwell cement works.
sites.google.com/site/derelicti … ment-works
The death knell for the old Cement works it would appear…
mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/(S( … nucsifgk2f/mgAi.aspx?ID=7197
Earthline are very busy tipping and recycling already.
Who remembers this fine grocer and where they were, I can still smell the fresh ground coffee and the spices as I walked past, tho’ this wagon is a bit before my time…and no googling.
oily
oiltreader:
Who remembers this fine grocer and where they were, I can still smell the fresh ground coffee and the spices as I walked past, tho’ this wagon is a bit before my time…and no googling.
oily
A bit sad but i can claim to remember this fine old wholesale grocer,their premises in Cornmarket st Oxford ,anyone remember at that time that Cornmarket st surface was rubber blocks and a b-gger in the wet when braking -quite a squeal rubber on rubber ! remember that this was the main A34 , total traffic from the North to Southampton --.the entrance was very narrow and congested and with the BRS artics of the day delivering mostly from the London wharves in Tooley st -no room even to fold your sheets up even-not a drop to look forward too all handball or sack work -not unusual for those days though .yes i can remember the coffee smell also from the Cadena along the road .
That’s a scary thought, the old A34 running right through Oxford. Which present day shop occupies the site of the grocers? I can only vaguely remember Cornmarket being a throughfare for vehicles?
Anyone recall the debacle that was the resurfacing about 9 or 10 years ago? The only good thing was that it exposed long demolished buildings that you could view from the street.
Muckaway:
That’s a scary thought, the old A34 running right through Oxford.
Anyone recall the debacle that was the resurfacing about 9 or 10 years ago? The only good thing was that it exposed long demolished buildings that you could view from the street.
Before any by-passes, the old A40/A34 crossroads was Carfax, just imagine, London/Welsh traffic both ways and just about everything from the North going to Southampton Docks, (a major port in byegone days) and of course again both ways. Few if any yellow lines, a bobby on point duty at peak periods on Carfax. My time as a city bus driver was '59 to '62 and the traffic was a shambles. Leaving Carfax to walk along Cornmarket Grimbly Hughes was about third on the left, there was a dance hall through a passageway alongside, called Carfax Assembly Rooms, there was a Lyon’s Corner House tea room on the corner of Cornmarket and High St. there’s a lot more but hey this is about lorries. Oh and Ivor I also remember the rubbers setts, oil leaky lorries and buses made them treacherous in wet.
oily
An afterthought.
The Carfax Assembly Rooms if I remember rightly belonged to the Co-op. There was also another dance hall called The Forum, on the High between Queens Lane and Longwall.
