Streetbank: A new way to borrow a bicycle

It's estimated that millions of cycles languish unused in sheds across the country. Alongside side them are lawn mowers, power tools and other household paraphernalia lying idle.

Streetbank.com is a not-for-profit website that allows neighbours to share bicycles, lawn mowers, tents and tools. In fact, anything that might prove useful to someone else.

According to the website, "We believe neighbourhoods are generous. Streetbank is a simple tool that unlocks that generosity by making it easy for you to carry out small acts of kindness."

For the want of a drill…

This type of cooperative arrangement fosters community spirit, reduces consumption and clears clutter. It also promises to save money. Let us suppose that on a street of 200 houses here in Britain, 100 of those dwellings have a cordless drill. Given most are used only very occasionally, 95 are surplus to requirement. Or put another way, £10,000 of unused drills on just one street. It’s likely many of those same homes house an unused bicycle, too.

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