News

In a bid to improve the environmental performance of their vehicles, London bus companies are introducing hybrid technology and experimenting with fuel cell designs, but a concept unveiled in China proposes a radical alternative that would eliminate the problems of pollution and congestion associated with diesel-powered vehicles. The bus...

A new generation of hitchhikers is using the internet to benefit from cheap road trips as Europe’s largest lift sharing portal expands to cater specifically for British travellers. Rideshare.co.uk is a new website that allows anyone looking to share a journey to search for lifts across Britain and Europe for free and without the need to...

Police in London are catching thieves by fitting decoy bicycles with hidden tracking devices. The technique is similar to the ‘bait cars’ used to great success by police in America. When stolen, the vehicles capture the thief on film before being immobilised remotely by the police. The twenty ‘medium-value’ bikes that make up...

A large procession of Christiana cargo bikes and trikes will join over 50,000 other cyclists on Sunday 5th September on traffic-free central London streets as part of the Freewheel event. The bikes are being bought in increasing numbers not only by businesses looking for an environmentally-friendly way of bypassing the congestion charge,...

Major research by the government into the way we travel has dispelled the popular myth that cycling is a mode of transport used in the main by those unable to afford a car; the National Travel Survey, which analysed personal travel made in Great Britain during 2009, showed that in households in the top fifth of income brackets, 77 miles...

Electric assist bicycles are set to revolutionise cycling in Britain, according to the Environmental Transport Association (ETA). Sales of bicycles are booming and commuting on two wheels is enjoying a renaissance in urban areas, but from a nationwide perspective cycling in decline. Many urban commuters cycle to beat congestion and keep...

London’s long-awaited mass cycle hire scheme has launched today with 315 docking stations and 5000 bikes available. Dubbed ‘Boris Bikes’ by its fans, the scheme stretches from Notting Hill Gate to Wapping, and from Regents Park to Borough Market. The docking stations that house the bikes when they are not being used are dotted every 300m in...

The £5,000 grant for buyers of electric cars, which seemed under threat when business secretary, Vince Cable, failed to mention it in the recent emergency budget, will go ahead in January 2011. £230m had been pledged for the Plug-in Grant, but the government has now reduced this to £43m with a review in January 2012. The revised fund will...

Royal Mail claims that increasingly heavy loads are the reason behind its decision to withdraw delivery bicycles in favour of diesel-powered vans. An increase in the number of books and DVDs ordered through online retailers such as Amazon has increased the size and weight of post bags. Paul Tolhurst, Royal Mail’s field operations director,...

An updated version of the all-electric Toyota RAV4 EV, a vehicle that was available to lease in America from 1997 to 2003, is to be developed with help from Tesla. Toyota expects to mass-produce the new car by 2012. Toyota, a company that has gained a reputation for favouring hybrid technology such as that used in its Prius over pure...