• Article |
• Discussion |
• View source |
• History

Stan Tacey with his wife, Eileen, pictured nearly 10 years ago when he was more mobile

Driving had its advantages and disadvantages when Stan Tacey took to the roads in the 1940s. The roads were practically empty but cars had no heating or indicators. In this high speed, hi-tech world, octogenarian Stan, of Normanton, wonders what the future may hold.

Looking out of the window, watching the streams of traffic passing, brings back memories of my years behind the wheel. I started to drive in the late 1940s. On the day of my driving test, I could not get my car to start and so one of my friends suggested that I borrowed his car to take the test and spent 10 minutes explaining the peculiarities of his vehicle. Needless to say, I failed my test and my ego told me that it was because I was driving a strange car. Thankfully, I passed my next test.

Driving in those days was ideal, there being very little traffic on the roads, except for cyclists and the occasional horse and cart.

However, there was no means of signalling. If you wanted to turn to the right, you simply wound down the window and stuck your arm out horizontally but if you wanted to turn left, you rotated your arm in a circular direction. Both of these operations were dangerous as it only left one hand on the wheel.

There were no heating facilities in those early cars and the constant opening of the window made the interior very cold. If we were going on a long journey, my wife would carry a hot water bottle with her.

Then came progress – the introduction of a signalling device. It consisted of a red coloured indicator about 10 inches long fitted to each side of the car, looking like a long finger, which was supposed to flip up and down to show in which direction your were turning.

It was not very reliable, however, and often, after operating it, I would hear my wife say: “Stan, your indicator is still on” and I would have to open the window to pull it down. She would have to do the same if it was on her side.

One of my earlier cars was a Ford Anglia, similar to the one used by David Jason in Only Fools and Horses. It only had three gears and so I had to double de-clutch when changing gear, which made things difficult.

A few years later, I had an unfortunate experience when teaching my daughter to drive. One Sunday morning, following a terrific storm the previous night, the roads were covered with debris.

We were at Stenson Bubble and, having crossed the canal, came to the T-junction to turn left when my daughter hit a branch that had just fallen.

Losing control, she went through a hedge, down a slope, narrowly missing trees on the way, before coming to a halt in a large pond.

It is a not a very nice experience, sitting in a car surrounded by water. We were lucky, however, for I heard a shout from the road and looked up to see a friend of mine, Brian Freeman.

“What are you doing down there?” he asked.

“You tell me!” I replied.

“I will get a tow truck to get you out,” he said.

He eventually returned and, with great difficulty, got us back on to the road. He was opening a garage at the Cavendish the next day. Over the many years that I visited him at his garage, he would always introduce me to people as his first customer.

Owing to my advancing years, I have great difficulty in walking now and my best friend is my trusty walking stick, closely followed by my car.

But I hope that I am not classed as one of the geriatrics who cause chaos on the main roads as my car is now only used for local trips.

I have served a long apprenticeship in driving. When I see people locking and unlocking their cars by remote control, I wonder what the future holds for us.

Will there be enough roads to cope with the increase in traffic and what will transport be like? Only time will tell!

FEEDBACK

Did you enjoy this article? If so, why not comment on it? Perhaps you disagree with something in it, or you know something the writer doesn't and can add some extra facts. You may want to ask a question about this article. Making a contribution is easy - either click 'edit' to insert more information or 'discussion' and then 'add comment.' This is your site. Please feel free to use it to the full and share your memories, thoughts and knowledge about Derbyshire with others.

If there is no 'edit' link showing it means the article has either previously been published in the Derby Evening Telegraph, or it has been protected by the site administrator and cannot be edited.'

County:  Derbyshire

Return to You_and_Yesterday