Press Releases 2009

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Beauty spots? Drivers prefer Ugly Spots!



Move over the Lake District and Angel of the North - drivers are more likely to use a Hoover factory and RAC call centre for their motoring landmarks, it was revealed yesterday.


The same goes for bizarre graffiti - such as the painted slogan 'Give Peas a Chance' over the M25 to give those stuck in clockwise jams near junction 16 a smile.


They may be more Ugly Spots than Beauty Spots but to drivers on a long familiar journey they are welcome landmarks to let them know where they are, said search engine Ask Jeeves.


The online specialists picked a top ten 'Unmarked Landmarks' on Britain's roads from the odd and quirky to the industrial but instantly recognisable.


The list, headed by the now iconic, Grade One listed Hoover Building in West London, was compiled by search engine Ask Jeeves from the more unusual requests made to its website by users.


Although not always notably famous, they are often unsung journey markers which can tell someone they are nearly home or work or approaching their motorway turnoff.


They are not always pretty either, such as the Port Talbot chemical plant on the M4 which flashes by those using the main route through Wales.


Or the John Lewis store adjacent to the M40 in Buckinghamshire, the RAC call centre on the M6 in Walsall or the Blue Pyramid near the M60, Stockport which is actually a Co-op Bank.


Others in the list include the remote and bleak Saddleworth Moor in Manchester, infamous for the Moors Murders in the 1960s.


Away from motorways. London commuters recognise the ugly concrete Paddington Green police station on the Harrow Road as their familiar landmark, said Ask Jeeves.


Ask Jeeves spokesperson Nadia Kelly said: "These are not the most famous landmarks or even the prettiest - let's face it, the RAC Centre is hardly a beauty spot.


"But they are our motoring markers, the places millions recognise as soon as they approach and as such are as important to the landscape as a stately home or park.


"Ask Jeeves is often being asked for details on these places, how far they are from a destination or which junction comes up afterwards so we figure they are used for routes.


"We thought we would salute them, from the smoking chimneys of Port Talbot to the iron monolith that is the Forth Bridge."


The list includes the strange Willow Man sculpture by the M5 near Bridgwater, which acts as a sign for holidaymakers they are nearing Devon and Cornwall resorts.


Unmarked landmarks:

  1. Hoover factory, A40, West London
  2. RAC Centre, junction of M6/M42, Walsall
  3. John Lewis, adjacent M40, Buckinghamshire
  4. Port Talbot chemical plant, M4, Wales
  5. Paddington Green police station, west London
  6. Give Peas a Chance graffiti, J16, M25
  7. The Blue Pyramid (Co-op Bank), M60, Stockport
  8. Forth Bridge, Edinburgh
  9. Saddleworth Moor, Manchester
  10. Willow Man outdoor sculpture, M5, Bridgwater, Somerset



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© 2009 IAC Search & Media