Cycle safety, health and safety

Dave Hill's London Blog carries a post about the London Cycle hire scheme, which goes 'live' this week in central areas; 6,000 bikes available for hourly hire. Among the comments on the post were some about the safety of cyclists, including this one, which I rather like:

I saw a guy on a scooter wearing a hi viz (jacket) the other day, it had written on the back "I'm only wearing this to cover somebody else's arse"

Extension

Some people don't have a front garden, or anywhere else to sit out in the sun.  These enterprising folk have cleverly solved that problem with this floating terrace.  

I wonder if they have to pay council tax on their extension?

Regent's Canal, July 2010

Three weeks old

I had a very pleasant afternoon: Ella slept in my lap for over two hours, while Hannah put her feet up (and the goldfish ignored us).

Tall buildings 2

I commented here last October on the new skyscraper being constructed on Bishopsgate, in the City of London, called the Heron Tower.

This is how it looked photographed from the same spot a couple of weeks ago, soaring away into the sky.

The building was ceremonially ‘topped out’ in April, when major construction was completed, and it now stands at 202 metres. The spire is still to be added; it has no purpose but will help push the final height up to 230 metres. There are 46 storeys of office space, with some retail planned at ground level and a restaurant at the top. I still don’t like the building much, but credit must go to those who manage such complex construction projects, on a very small and tricky site right in the centre of this busy city.

The south façade of the Heron Tower, with the distinctive shape of the Gherkin reflected.

Adorable....

...and now weighing-in at 9lbs.

Product design: bendy bike

The Telegraph features an interesting idea (in their ‘Green Motoring’ pages - can motoring be green?). It is a bendy-framed bicycle for which the designer, student Kevin Scott, has just won a design award.

Read more about it here and here.