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Most bus stops are usually bland and in many cases offer little shelter – and are often vandalised.
But on the Fulwood and Plungington border there’s probably one of the nicest looking and most ornate bus stops anywhere in the country.
The green and white structure, on the Lytham Road and Black Bull Lane roundabout, is the only one of its kind in the city.
Read more: A glimpse back into the 1980s in Preston’s past
Ashley Warren Preston, posting in the Preston History group, questioned whether it had previously been a tram stop – from when trams ran in the city.
But it turns out the shelter was never on a tram route.
Andrew Swarbrick stepped in with information from a book by Mike Rhodes – Preston’s Trams and Buses (1995) and A Century of Preston Bus Routes (2022) to reveal all.
He said: “It was, however, the original terminus of Preston’s first bus route which began in 1922 – so still in the era of the tramway system. Originally it operated via Plungington Road and returned along Brook Street. Within a short time, it was re- routed to use Plungington Road in both directions.
“The bus turned at the junction with Lytham road and Black Bull Lane with the shelter at the point where after performing it’s U-turn manoeuvre, it stopped and waited its departure time. The rather grand shelter was provided by Preston Corporation Tramways for its new (perhaps prestigious) service.”
So next time you’re shivering and waiting for the 23, or passing by, there’s a little piece of Preston bus history right there.
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