Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
July 9, 1923 The Logan Valley Bus Company (LVBC) began operations in the vicinity of Altoona, Pennsylvania, in the south-central region of the Keystone State. (A portion of this area has long been known as Logan Valley.) The LVBC was formed the previous week as a subsidiary of the Altoona & Logan Valley (A&LV) Electric... Continue Reading →
July 2, 1927 The Ferguson Highway was formally dedicated in the province of Ontario, Canada. The public official presiding over this inauguration of the highway on a Saturday afternoon was William Finlayson (1876-1943), Ontario’s minister of lands and forests. The 260-mile (420-kilometer)-long gravel road, which stretched from the town of Cochrane to the city of North... Continue Reading →
June 26, 1919 A caravan of motor trucks carrying a total of 50 specially selected boy scouts headed out of Akron, Ohio, for a journey of about 2,000 miles (3,218.7 kilometers) through nine states altogether. This Wednesday departure from northeastern Ohio’s Summit County marked the start of what Vehicle Monthly magazine characterized as “one of the... Continue Reading →
June 3, 1921 One of the most famous symbols of an American transportation company made its debut. This symbol was the bulldog representing what is now Mack Trucks, Inc. and it first appeared when the business was known as the International Motor Truck Corporation. More than two decades earlier, the brothers Jack and Gus -- seeking... Continue Reading →
May 31, 1969 A major tunnel that is located just south of the Belgian city of Antwerp and had been built under the Scheldt river first went into service when it was opened to motor vehicle traffic. Another milestone for this tunnel took place just a little over eight months later when it was opened... Continue Reading →
May 24, 1915 Civil engineer Arthur Hale applied for a patent for his design of a road interchange focused on facilitating the flow of automobile traffic. Hale, who resided in the village of Rowlandsville in Maryland, characterized this design as one that contained “certain new and useful improvements in street crossings.” Hale’s proposed interchange consisted... Continue Reading →
May 21, 1901 In response to the steady increase of automobiles on its roads, the state of Connecticut enacted a pioneering speed limits law. This law required that automobiles travel no faster than 12 miles (19.3 kilometers) per hour within cities and 15 miles (24.1 kilometers) per hour on roads elsewhere. The law also required automobile drivers... Continue Reading →
April 30, 1939 The 1939 New York World’s Fair at Flushing-Meadows Corona Park was formally opened. This world’s fair ranks second only to the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis as the largest event of its kind to be held in the United States. With its opening slogan of “Dawn of a New Day,”... Continue Reading →
April 5, 1878 Albert Champion, who made notable contributions to various modes of transportation, was born in Paris. By the end of the 19th century, he had established himself as a formidable track bicycle racer in his native France. In 1899, Champion surprised nearly everyone by beating out quite a few seasoned cyclists to win... Continue Reading →
April 3, 2016 A bus rapid transit (BRT) system in England’s ceremonial county of Greater Manchester was inaugurated. A section of this system has the distinction of being the first guided busway – a dedicated, buses-only route – to operate in northwestern England. There is a multi-user path alongside this guided section for bicyclists, pedestrians,... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 