Yoo Hoo Wuhan - Part 1

 

Wuhan in China has the dubious reputation of probably being the source of the Covid outbreak, an appellation hotly denied by the Authorities. Lockdown was very severe and heavily enforced. Here is the bridge over the Yangtze river during and after.

The city was 'created' from three conurbations. The 'Wu' comes from Wuchan, the 'Han' from Hankou and Hanyang.

The prefecture-level city of Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei province, China, has a long and rich history that dates back over 3,500 years. Starting out from the Shang dynasty-era archaeological site at Panlongcheng associated with Erligang culture, the region would become part of the E state and Chu state during the Zhou dynasty. 

The region evolved into an important port on the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, and the cities of Hanyang, Hankou and Wuchang were united into the city of Wuhan in 1926. 

Modern-day Wuhan is known as 'China's Thoroughfare' due to its status as a major transportation hub, with dozens of railways, roads and expressways passing through the city and connecting to other major cities.

Current population is approx 13 million!

It's big!

 

There is history in the big city, but most of it has been moved, renewed or repurposed. Typical is The Yellow Crane Pagoda ... which has seen many versions over the long years. Here us Pagoda Mark 1 (probably "imagined" ...

A more recent rebuild ...

... and today's bigger  and better version.

It looks as if the build it bigger at each rebuild!

There is a resited Buddhist pagona ...

... and a memorial to one of the many revolutions that has beset city and country in the past.

Talking of revolutions, Mao Zedong wrote a celebratory ode to uphold his aim to prevent flooding buy building upstream barriers of concrete.

He never did!

Flooding has always been a problem. Here is a holy site (not at Wuhan) no longer open to the public, set high up on its fluvial rock.

And here's why!

The palace survives!

But fbb's interest is, as ever, in Wuhan's public transport. There is lots to investigate - but with some trepidation as fbb's  knowledge of Chinese is limited to a Chop Suey (which was invented in the USA!)

Here  is a taster ...

... NO ... not a toaster but a taster. fbb's  mum and dad had one of these that always sent the slices of bread into flames and billowing smoke. fbb did try it when they were out and it did, spectacularly!

Back to the taster. Wuhan has ...

High Speed  Rail

 A large and relatively recent Metro network

Trams

One of these?

Buses

Trolleybuses

 

Tour buses

AND ferries!

When and how these modes will be covered is not clear.

But surely fbb will unearth some delights.

As you might expect with a big city in China, technology is King! So don't expect too many timetable leaflet PDFs.

  Next Wuhan mini blog : Friday 15th May 

(Pre) Destination Part 4

 First, The Answers

But Moscow wasn't there! These, however, were featured yesterday.

Crosville

Birkenhead (or Wallasey?)

Rotherham

Sheffield

Belfast

Colchester

So here is today's selection.

One of the very original PTEs

Should be easy as the blind layout, typeface and the selection of place names are all 'iconic'. The city is not Weatherfield!

The style remained unchanged until the PTE got going.

The foundation of First Bus

The large one track number blind was distinctive.

The livery gained a red stripe ...

... and under First's ownership, gained a small thistle.

A municipal operator still owned bu its Council - and a pioneer of yellow on black ...

.... which did fade very quickly.  A brighter better font followed.

Another novelty was the use of mechanical route numbers, a bit like the original digital clock displays.

Once the biggest bus company (outside London) with the widest operating area. Historically beaten in area by United!

The company also built its own buses.

The operation was split up for privatisation.

Another PTE to be.

The two track destination blinds side by side are very unusual.

The layout remained constant into more recent pre-PTE times.

The 96 works service ran to TVs "Newtown".

Once a trolleybus operator ...

... part of the former Tilling Group, but with non Tilling blind layout ...

... and route letter plus number display. Later the blind display was reduced and separate number and letter blinds appeared,

Another Scottish distinctive blind style.

Post deregulation the city and surrounding area was dominated by First.

A municipality also still local authority owned.

This blind is one of the newest in the fbb revelation!

Buses have gone from red to red and blue and now to yellow with a very strange logo.

is it a wolf?

And a trip overseas, a long way overseas, to what was once Stagecoach territory.

Here is the blind ...

And here us an oldish picture of an actual bus going to New Lynn.

There is a hefty clue in the above blind.

Answers tomorrow!

=========================

The Predestination Debate

Like so many Bible "problems" the way words have been translated in the past causes angst. How many 21st century enquirers have sniggered at the phrase "Holy Ghost"?

Taking things out of context is a recipe for confusion. The passage about 'predestination' begins thus:-

We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose.

Then comes the predestination bit.

Things happen when, and only when, we are willing to be part of God's plans and put any personal desires and ambitions second place to His.

So God has a plan for each one of us, a route through life and an eternal destination which we can call heaven (although nobody fully understands what the terminus is like -  but it's exceptionally good!) 

So we have a pre-determined destination, but we still have to get on the God Bus and stay on the God Bus. That's  our free will choice.

====================

Also tomorrow, fbb hopes to take his readers to the city which most authorities recognise as the source of Covid.

  Next new Metro line blog : Thurs 14th May 

(Pre) Desotination Part 3

fbb's favourite 'version' is the Good News Bible; he likes the pictures as here with Jesus' parable of The Lost Sheep.

It's  a bit like a "Where's Wally" picture!

The Good News Bible doesn't use the 'technical' term "predestination" but it would not have resolved the discussions at Friday Fellowship,

Those whom God had already chosen he also set apart to become like his Son, so that the Son would be the eldest brother in a large family. And so those whom God set apart, he called; and those he called, he put right with himself, and he shared his glory with them.

The cynical teens asked the struggling leader questions along these lines. "If God has predestined those that will go to heaven, what's the point of being good?"

Over the years, fbb formulated an answer that made sense to him!

More From L I S T**

Back in the day, bus destinations were in the form if a long band of translucent cloth (later plastic) printed with white lettering on a black background. The bus conductor would turn little handles to set the various sections of the blinds.

For some there was also a mini gearbox to turn the various drive shafts; for others the mechanism was simple but threefold for three sections of screen.

Conductors had to be quite agile to reach, as below with just one handle high up above the engine.

It was quite a big job. London's tradition RT bus had front ...

... rear and side screens.

Largely because of one man operation, nowadays you only get a front blind either with electric motors doing the winding: or maybe more than one display but fully electronic.

But there was a joy in seeing the conductor winding steadily through a long blind; although not many were quite as long as this!

So here follows an extra quiz at no extra charge. Can readers identify which operator might be scrolling these blinds. The answers will be duly revealed tomorrow!

Which operator us this?

The company reduced its blind display many years before such economies became common.

WARNING : Many of these pictures were not given a detailed caption on-line, so fbb has had to guess.  Apologies if the old and chubby one has got it wrong, again!

This pre-PTE municipal operator.

fbb thinks it is this one ...

... but it could be this one.

... which, uniquely (?), had some red on white blinds - seemingly more illegible than white on black!

Another pre-PTE municipality.

Some delightful y*rksh*r* names there. The buses had two number blinds separated by a black panel ...

... which needed some clever thinking when the PTE added 100 to the route numbers. What did not happen was a change to three track number blinds as incorrectly (?) shown on this preserved daimler.

And not far away an operator with two locality blind apertures ...

... although for most routes only one was used.

Now we go overseas.

One destination may be a clue for those that remember the city's troubled past.

One destination might confuse, however!

And another long-gone municipality.

North Station is a clue, but it is not called that nowadays.

Currently this town's buses are branded as below.

This has been a fascinating excursion into the minutiae of bus operation. There may be a few more tomorrow!

L I S T? 

The Local Itineribus Society Team

  More from L I S T blog : Weds 13th May