Now we have the flyover, but imagine the line of cars if it hadn't been built.
In 1952 my wife and I bought our first house in Meadway, Forest Hall. My job was as a Maintenance Fitter at the Department of Health & Social Security offices in Longbenton. I worked shifts and used my cycle to get to and from work. The 6.00am to 2.00pm shift meant I left home at 5.30am. The main Edinburgh to London railway line passes through Forest Hall and the crossing gates were controlled by a signalman in a signal box above the line. Traffic had to wait if a train was due, until it passed and then the gates were opened which took several minutes. At 5.30am in the morning they were always closed. Sometimes I doubted if a train was due, but the signalman wouldn’t open them for a cyclist, so I had to shoulder my bike over the bridge steps, across the bridge and down the other side then continue on my way to work.
Now we have the flyover, but imagine the line of cars if it hadn’t been built.