Am I remembering correctly, I am sure there was a couple odd filling stations that sold more than one brand of petrol?Above them you may well have seen one of these - taken somewhere (do not know where) in Aston in the late 70's - bet it is not there now!
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eric living in villa st at the time you was working at watsons i must have walked past that pump many times but being a youngster would not have taken much notice of itThe old pump in Alan's post is the same as the one we had at Watsons in Villa Street, it was just inside the fence and had an arm that swung out over the footpath, It worked on a wind up rack, bottom to top for each gallon, a nice arm ache when the trucks wanted twenty gallons.
The first place I worked at was on the Chester Road at Streetly (by the Parson and Clerk) they had four pumps all with different company globes on, I can remember there was Power and National Benzole and I think Shell Mex an BP but the petrol was all the same 'Pool' petrol the wartime stuff.
This signage would have gone by 1976 as Shell Mex & BP split from each other end of 1975. Their employees and sales were split 60% Shell and 40% BP, initially at the end of June 1975 I was branded BP but Changed to Shell by year end.Above them you may well have seen one of these - taken somewhere (do not know where) in Aston in the late 70's - bet it is not there now!
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The scientists say a 'minimum' distance of 50 metres should therefore be maintained between petrol stations and housing, and 100 metres for 'especially vulnerable' facilities such as hospitals, health centres, schools and old people's homes.Great photos all. Surely there must have been a point where petrol pumps couldn’t be located within a certain distance of domestic premises? Some of the old pumps look dangerously close to houses. Viv.