Which way will it go?

Between now and 10th December the approximately 1.9 million voters of the ten district councils that make up the Greater Manchester area are being asked to cast their vote in a referendum.

They are being asked to vote for or against a proposal which includes both major investment in public transport and a weekday, peaktime only congestion charging scheme for some motor vehicles, notably private cars.

Organisations both for and against the idea have mounted spirited campaigns throughout the region. Pictured here are adverts from both camps and the ballot paper.

John Dalton, colour blind father of Atomic Theory

Statue of John Dalton located outside the Dalton Building of Manchester Metropolitan University on Chester Street, Manchester, UK.

Dalton was an English chemist, meteorologist and physicist.
(b. Sept. 6, 1766, d. July 27, 1844)

Dalton taught in Manchester and conducted experiments which enabled him to develop the ancient Greek concept of atoms into a scientific theory that laid the foundation of modern chemistry.

Dalton also scientifically described an affliction possessed by himself and his brothers which became known as Daltonism - colour blindness.

Confluence

Looking across the River Irwell to the point where the River Medlock enters Manchester's main watercourse. Also the site of Hulme Locks which link the Irwell with the nearby Bridgewater Canal. Downstream of here the Irwell was canalised in the late 19th Century to form the Manchester Ship Canal. Recently built apartment buildings flank the river and canal banks and the Victorian railway arches.

Autumn

Autumn colours on trees in Moorside Park, Swinton

Looking up Roscoe Road, Irlam onto Irlam Moss on a sunny but cold autumn day

A Manchester River

River Medlock

The River Medlock rises in Oldham, to the north east of Manchester and flows through east Manchester into the city centre. Within the city much of its course is culverted under buildings etc., the river only briefly appearing where it flows below bridges carrying the roads and railways of the city. Pictured here is part of a lengthy exposed stretch of the river as it flows alongside Potato Wharf, Castlefield (on the left bank) and the New Elm Road industrial area (to the right). In the distance the river flows under the Dawson Street road bridge and then adds its waters to the River Irwell.

Old advert!

Turog Bread

Advertisement on the gable end of a former bakery in my home town of Irlam. This probably dates from the 1950s and before. I thought I'd photograph it before it, or the building, disappears.

A new hope

Learning Centre

Oxford Road, Manchester, UK on the day Barack Obama became President-elect of the United States of America. Buildings of the University of Manchester, old and new, dominate this area.