Former Yelloway Travel Bureau and office building in Smith Street, Rochdale – April 1989 (Photo by T.A. Slater) (TAS0489B)

April 1989 – A photograph taken for me by my late Father of the now closed Yelloway office building in Smith Street, Rochdale seen from beneath the ramp of the multi-storey car park which topped the old bus station (visible extreme left).

During the 1970s Yelloway bought the former Kelsall and Kemp warehouse building which had for many years impeded its expansion plans. After purchase the top floor was removed and the building modernised and stone cleaned, it always having appeared black over the past years.

All the office functions were then moved from the various corners of the garage site into the new building. The Travel Bureau occupied prominent position at street level facing the town centre. The Chart Room, where all advance bookings were recorded, was located above it.

The Traffic Office was sited behind the Travel Bureau on the Ground Floor. The Accounts and General Office were located on the first floor. The second floor was used for storage.

The original Travel Bureau, housed in former cottages, was demolished as part of the project and had stood on the far right of the exterior stairway.

Yelloway used to make good use of the wall of the warehouse to display excursion boards which held in place by a heavy duty wire strewn the length of the wall fastened at each end. Now and again one of ends of the wire would give way and all the boards would end up face down on the footpath!

The wall and windows of the garage/coach station can be seen in the distance above the white taxi (right).

For a few years more the building was taken over by a firm of chartered accountants (BDO Binder Hamlyn) using the address as Lewis House, 12 Smith Street.

It is quite different here today. A new bus station was constructed on the far right. The Yelloway and other property all demolished and redeveloped as the ‘Number One Riverside’ council building. The old bus station and multi-storey car park was demolished and redeveloped. The Metrolink tram tracks and platforms stand roughly where the photograph was taken.