Impact of car ownership & travel developments, 1918-79 (4c) Flashcards
Give some examples of travel developments
- The Mersey Tunnel
- The M1
- The Great North Road
When was the Mersey Tunnel constructed?
1934
When was the M1 constructed?
1959
What is the history of the Phoenix Trail in Thame?
It used to be a railway line before the Beeching Axe of 1963
How did international travel change between 1955-70?
1 million passengers in 1955
14 million by 1970
How did travel methods change in the 1920s & 30s?
There was a dramatic shift away from horse-drawn carriages
Rapid decline in tram usage - town & city councils switched to buses instead
How did the amount of horse-drawn carriages change in the 1920s & 30s in Britain?
1923 - over 200,000
1937 - 12,000
By 1934 how many cars were there on British roads?
Nearly 2.5 million
Half were privately owned
What was the pricing of cars like in the 1920s?
They were very expensive - far beyond anything most families could afford
The Rover 10/25 cost £250 (approx. £11,000 today)
What was the pricing of cars like in the 1920s?
Car prices fell considerably
An Austin Seven cost £125 & the Morris Minor SV was the first £100 car
What was car ownership like in the 1930s?
It was overwhelmingly to preserve the middle classes - the prices were affordable to the middle class
However second hand sellers would sell cars for £40 and £70 for those who couldn’t afford new ones
How did some working class families get around the high prices of cars in the 1930s?
Several families would form syndicates where they shared the cost & usage of the car
What was the 1930 Road Traffic Act?
It removed speed limits from all but the most dangerous stretches of road
The normal 20mph speed limit was almost unenforcable
What did the 1930 Road Traffic Act include?
- Compulsory third party insurance
- The Highway Code
- Powers for local authorities to control traffic with traffic lights, roundabouts & one-way streets
When was the Great North Road built?
Finished in 1939
