174HA. Garrison Lane, Bordesley, Saltley, Birmingham, West Midlands With thanks to Dwight for informing me of this Survivor. Situated within the yard for a car sales company is a 1960s' 25 ft (8 m) Abacus tubular steel column supporting a Mk 1 Atlas Alpha 3 / AEI Optispec 1 lantern, for 250 - 400 Watt MBF (mercury vapour) lamps. As the yard has much newer floodlights illuminating it too, the Alpha 3 is probably abandoned, but has remained in place, simply because it isn't causing any immediate harm, and removing the column would be quite tricky logistical task, owing to the amount of cars that are parked in front of it. As car-related forecourts that were lit with the combination of the Abacus column and Alpha 3 lantern often seemed to have two identical installations, a second column may once have existed on the other side of the compound, but if it did, it would have been removed long ago.
Unusually, the column is fixed, and not base-hinged.
The Perspex bowl has become translucent with age, though it remains transparent enough for a build-up of dirt to be seen within it.
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