A blast to the past was delivered as part of a unique weekend celebration of the Forth Road Bridge.
Members of the public were given the chance to see behind the scenes of one of Scotland’s most iconic structures when the Forth Estuary Transport Authority held its second open week at the bridge, and there was plenty to see and do.
Minibus tours were run and other attractions included demonstrations of the recovery of an overturned tanker and the rescuing of people from a confined space.
Visitors were also able to view the bridges from height on a mobile elevating work platform and, in a special part of the Saturday programme, a miniature bus recreated a journey down memory lane from around half a century ago.
Proudly at the wheel of the tiny motorbike-engined coach was Arbroath High School pupil John Kerr, the third generation of the well-known family to operate the eponymous miniature railway tourist attraction on the town’s West Links.
His grandfather Matthew drove a group of youngsters across the Forth Road Bridge to mark the launch of the first bus routes in the 1960s.
Teenager John was delighted to be invited to take the coach back, along with a miniature fire engine which also proved popular on the day.
Kerr’s Miniature Railway lies directly beside the main east coast rail line and passing trains traditionally give a toot to passengers on the small-scale neighbour.
At the weekend, however, a Royal Navy vessel passing under the bridge blasted its horn to the visitors aboard the miniature coach.
“It was a great event and quite busy, despite the weather,” said John. “We drove the bus across the pedestrian walkway and it was quite an honour to do the same crossing as my grandfather had all those years ago.
“And the blast from the ship’s horn was a bit different to what we normally get from the trains passing through Arbroath,” he added.