This picture shows what I always consider to be the "classic" Mumps bridge junction, but in fact many of the features seen here were really quite ephemeral. The most striking feature is the Guinness advert in huge letters on the bridge, a very early instance of the development of a strong brand identity, yet this had gone by 1969 as seen in the earlier shot of 158. The traffic lights were a relatively recent feature too and note in particular the set of lights to the right controlling traffic leaving Bell Street on the left. The traffic lights became but a memory in early 1970 when work started on the roundabout. Underneath the bridge is the boarded-up shell of Buckley and Prockter's, once one of Oldham's most prestigious stores. The bus was very new at the time of the photo and is one of a batch of ten which like all new buses at this time were put to work on these routes as they were the busiest and most profitable.
