On this day in Yorkshire 1950

Mr. Donald Wood, who keeps the petrol filling station near the junction of the Harrogate and Ilkley roads at Bolton Abbey, looked at his holiday sales figures with surprise last night.

Despite the enormous increase in road traffic during the weekend, his returns were down compared with last Whitsuntide.

“It’s hard to believe with all these cars about,” he told me. “but my sales Sunday were 14 gallons less than Whit-Sunday last year and they have not been what I expected to-day.”

I heard the same story at other petrol stations all the way from Bolton Abbey to Kettlewell. It was obvious that motorists had been determined not to run the risk of being stranded and had filled their petrol tanks at the first opportunity after leaving home.

There will plenty of petrol left in the Dales at the end of the holidays. Even though all available parking places at Burnsall were full, both yesterday and on Sunday, the local garage proprietor said he had had no rush of business.

At one of the local hotels an assistant who had been dealing with a stream of thirsty customers told me:

“Work at the beer pumps has been hectic, but we have had very few callers at the hotel petrol pump.”

Bolton Abbey attracted scores of motorists. Hundreds of people took picnic teas the riverside.

Onwards Kettlewell it was the same holiday scene. On the winding country roads cars were parked wherever the grass verge was wide enough.

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