News

The electric child trailer that pushes your bicycle up hills

January 18, 2013

A child trailer with a built-in electric motor capable of pushing a bicycle at up to 19mph has gone on sale for less than £500. The design is an evolution of the original RideKick powered bike trailer – a clever alternative to a conventional e-bike that gives any bicycle a boost of battery power without the need for modification. A throttle...

Cycling

2013 shaping up as vintage year for potholes

January 18, 2013

A combination of wet weather in 2012 and this week's freeze is paving the way for a season of atrocious potholes. Hidden dangers: This pothole, photographed this morning, will be invisible to motorists once its full of snow. A record-breaking year for rainfall in 2012...

Cycling

Cardboard cycle helmet now on sale

January 18, 2013

A cardboard cycle helmet which is claimed to be stronger and more durable than those of conventional polystyrene construction has gone on sale after the idea was taken up by Abus. Royal College of Art postgraduate Anirudha Surabhi developed the lightweight and waterproof Kranium cardboard cycle helmet following a tumble from his bike. His...

Cycling

Motorists urged to clear snow from car headlights

January 18, 2013

Motorists who take to the roads during the current severe weather conditions are being urged to clear snow from their car's windows and lights before setting off. This driver may as well not bother to use their headlights or indicators as no one will see them...

Breakdown

Women banned from cycling in 2013

January 17, 2013

If you cycle on the road, it's easy to bemoan the conditions for bicycles. However, next time your teeth rattle as your wheels sink into a pothole, your heart jumps as car overtakes with inches to spare or you return to your bike only to find its seat has been pinched, consider perhaps the plight of women in North Korea, all of whom have...

Cycling

As cold snap looms, drivers urged to avoid breakdown gamble

January 11, 2013

With sub-zero temperatures predicted for much of the country this weekend, drivers are being urged to ensure they have adequate car breakdown cover in place. Freezing temperatures place an additional strain on cars and result in flat batteries being the number one cause of breakdowns at this time of year. If you do not have car breakdown...

Breakdown

The VW city car powered by same gas as your oven

January 10, 2013

One of the snags about owning an electric car is the time it takes to top up its batteries – it can take up to 8 hours to re-charge fully from a domestic electricity supply and with range compromised by cold weather the problem is particularly bad at this time of year. In contrast to car makers like Nissan and Renault, who are forging ahead...

Driving

Need a new bicycle light? Print it

January 10, 2013

Three-dimensional printers allow you to manufacture almost anything you want at home, including a host of cycling-related accessories. The bicycle lamp attachment pictured right deflects some of the light so that it is visible from the side – a useful boost to visibility on dark winter mornings and nights. It was created using a 3-D printed...

Cycling

Hummer electric car is pint-sized

January 10, 2013

Hummer 4x4s have always looked incongruous on British roads; their sizeable chrome grilles that do such a good job reflecting the California sun and sky look garish on a drab winter’s day over here and the obesity of their bodywork is ill-suited to narrower streets. You don’t need to be a dyed-in-the-wool environmentalist to recognise 15mpg...

Driving

One car breaks down every seven seconds

January 4, 2013

An estimated 1m motorists will find themselves in need of roadside assistance in the winter months between December and February. Breakdown cover provider ETA analysed the records of 800,000 customers and found that over the same period last year, one car in Britain broke down every 7 seconds day and night. Cars are most likely to break...

Breakdown