TOPS NEWS – January 2005
Last August work began to widen the Bishop’s Bridge Road bridge,
Paddington to 6 lanes. The old bridge,
weighing 700 tonnes, was lifted to a height of 26 metres and fixed onto
temporary towers. It will remain
suspended there for about a year whilst a new wide bridge is built alongside
and then slid in underneath, using 24 rollers and eight 450-tonne jacks over a
4-week period. The original 3 lane
bridge will then be lowered and dismantled - quite a feat.
Thefts of vehicles in England and Wales have fallen
from 581,901 ten years ago to 279,111 and theft from vehicles has fallen from
913,276 to 598,514. Vauxhalls have been
the favourite target – the 1990 Belmont, Astra Mk2 and Nova.
Unpaid speed camera fines have reached £390m in England and
Wales.
Cruise control is banned on Belgian motorways – with fines of up to
£1000. It has been said that in Austria
if you normally wear glasses, you must carry a spare pair in the car when
driving - can anyone confirm this?
Speed cameras on Coventry’s ring road are being taken down because they
are hidden from drivers.
The famous Millau viaduct (France) opened in December.
Police in Milton Keynes are giving out energy drinks to
drivers they think are tired.
The 113 mile Sicilian motorway from Palermo to Messina has finally
been completed after 35 years – the last 25 miles took only 3 years. Half of the last 19 miles runs through 16
tunnels and over 14 viaducts. The
reason for the delay is blamed on the alleged siphoning-off of funds and
materials. The road, partly funded by
the EU, has cost £500m and, when opened, could only be used in one direction
due to a waterlogged tunnel. It is
still intended to build a giant bridge linking Sicily with the mainland.
Motorists over the age of 65 could have to pass medicals every
five years to keep their driving licences under measure being debated by the
EU. Currently UK motorists over 70 have to renew their licence every 3 years
but do not require a medical.
Taxi fares in London are due to rise by 20p a fare from
April – the excuse: Ken Livingstone wants taxis to fit filters which allow them
to run on LPG.
There are believed to be about 30,000 illegal minicab
drivers operating in Britain and together they are responsible for an estimated
5,000 sexual assaults each year. In
London alone it is believed such drivers sexually assault a woman every three
days and rape at least three women a month.
Russian, Roman Abramovich, who bought the carmaker TVR for
£15m last year and is the owner of Chelsea Football Club, is being sued by a
Western aid bank for £9m which the Bank claims should have been used to help
small businesses in Russia. Abramovich,
who claims he repaid the debt, is expected to give evidence in Switzerland.
William Wagstaff (95) bought his black F. W. Evans racing bike in 1929 for £13
and rode it almost every day of his life until this year. He decided to give up cycling after a recent brush with a motorist and
donated his bike to the London Transport Museum.
The Highways Agency has said that the scheme, tried on
the M5 near Bristol, to decrease congestion by making drivers towing trailers
or caravans use the inside lane, did not work.
Bentley has released first details of its new ‘small’
saloon. The new car has a six-litre, twin-turbocharged, V12 delivering 552bhp
through an all-wheel-drive transmission system with six-speed automatic
gearbox. Top speed is claimed to be “in excess of 190mph” and 0-62mph (100km/h)
acceleration takes 5 seconds. The
traditional leather and wood interior accounts for over 11 leather hides.
General Motors North America had to recall over 10.5m vehicles in
2004. Daewoo cars are to be
badged ‘Chevrolet’ to try and improve their image.
Legal curbs on the use of motorcycles, 4x4s and quad bikes on public
rights of way such as bridal paths are to be rushed through Parliament.
German detectives are
hunting thieves who broke into a car showroom and stole only the coffee
machine. Dozens of brand new Citröen cars were parked in the showroom in Bonn
and the keys were on the wall.
Mini
has launched a
6-wheel, 4-door, 6-seater stretch Mini Cooper S. The XXL comes with a retractable flat screen TV, a DVD player, CD
and radio, air conditioning, sunroof, full black leather and a telephone in the
rear so that passengers can communicate with the driver. The highlight is the
whirlpool in the rear. The car is supported by a third rear axle with two
additional wheels.
Sarah McCaffery, 23, was fined £60 and £100 costs for holding an apple in her hand
while driving around a bend. Northumbria police had to use a spotter aircraft,
a helicopter and a patrol car to prove and win the case. Nine previous court
hearings had been adjourned. The full cost of bringing the case against Miss
McCaffery is thought to have been about £10,000.
Bentley Motors is
to build 20 of the Arnage limousine which was displayed as a 'concept' car at
the 2004 Geneva Motor show. Each car
will be hand-built to individual customer specification - options include
armour protection. The car is based
upon the Arnage R with uprated suspension and reinforced subframes. An extra
200mm is added to the D pillar, a further 200mm goes into the rear doors and
another 50mm into the front doors.
Power comes from the traditional 6.75-litre V8 developing 400 bhp and
616 lb ft/835Nm of torque. Prices from
£270,000.
The 500,000th engine has come off the production line at the BMW Group Hams
Hall engine plant.
For 25 years busy
London people have been using motorcycle taxis, but such services could be made
illegal next month. Legislation now
demands that licensed taxis have 4 road wheels, so bikes must be exempted
before they can legally carry paying passengers. The Public Carriage Office
operated by Transport for London has been unwilling to grant this exemption.
Protective clothing has to be supplied and all riders have to pass an advanced
riding test. Angry responses have prompted Ken Livingstone to ask TfL to
re-examine the issue.
Motorists were furious after a garage blunder meant they put diesel into their
fuel tanks instead of petrol. More than 50,000 litres of diesel had been
accidentally pumped into an underground petrol tank at a BP station in Earley,
Berkshire.
Motorsport doctor Sid Watkins (78) has retired after 25 years on the Formula One
circuits. He will be succeeded by his
deputy Gary Hartstein.
MPs have rejected a proposal to reduce their car allowance rate of 57.7p per mile from
April.
A new breed of
wearable robotic vehicles which envelop drivers is being developed by Toyota.
The company's vision for the single passenger in the 21st Century involves the
driver cruising in a 4-wheeled leaf-like device or strolling along encased in
an egg-shaped cocoon which walks upright on two feet.
Ray Bellm, chairman of the BRDC,
stepped-down at their last committee meeting.
BRDC President, Sir Jackie Stewart, was said to be unhappy with the
five-year deal Bellm had negotiated to run the British Grand Prix. Bernie Ecclestone and sports minister
Richard Caborn have expressed surprise at the move and Bellm has been outspoken
in his criticism of the BRDC’s approach to business.
TOPS NEWS is an abridged version of one
section of the TOPS magazine sent to members.
Trisha Pilkington