Cyclists gear up for Massive Bike Revival

David Cameron, Boris Johnson and Andrew Mitchell apart, you rarely see a politician on a bike.

Which is funny, simply because political parties really like cycling. It plays to crucial agendas such as well being and the environment and it is an simple win as far as boosting green credentials is concerned.

The outgoing coalition government put its cash where its mouth was with £1 million of backing for a campaign to assist individuals cycle more safely by providing them the expertise to repair and preserve their bikes.

On yer bike

The Big Bike Revival, masterminded by cycling charity CTC, aims to encourage much more folks to dig out their old bike and rediscover the joys of cycling.

The campaign begins in earnest in Might, when would-be cyclists will be in a position to take their bike to a participating re-cycle centre.

They can then understand how to fix and preserve the bike, or trade it in for a different model.

Men and women will also be in a position to find out about cycle instruction and other activities in the location. You will even be capable to donate any unwanted bicycles.

Pollution resolution

Announcing the government backing, Robert Goodwill, the coalition’s transport minister, mentioned: “We are severe about getting folks on their bike – cycling is great for our wellness and indicates less-congested cities and less pollution.

“Now spring has arrived, there is no far better time to bring out that bike gathering dust in the shed.

“The Massive Bike Revival will help you sort out the punctures and minor mechanical troubles that we have all used as an excuse not to get out on 2 wheels.”

Saddle sore

In 2013, 42% of adults in Britain had access to a bicycle, however 63% had not ridden in the preceding year. But 37% say they could simply swap the automobile for the bike for short journeys of much less than 2 miles.

A CTC pilot project in October 2014 proved a big good results, attracting a lot more than 1,300 men and women to 10 centres across West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Liverpool.

A final list of participating re-cycle centres will be accessible in May possibly – watch this space.

Ride and park

The outgoing government also announced a further £15 million on improvements to cycle facilities at nearly 300 railway stations across the country.

The money will spend for an added 7,500 cycle parking spaces at 279 stations, tripling the number of cycle parking spaces at stations considering that 2010.

Main stations set to benefit from a grant contain Derby, Lincoln, Dorking, Preston and Rugby.

There will also be a new cycle route and 300 cycle parking spaces in Cheltenham Spa.

Cyclists gear up for Massive Bike Revival

You are breaking the law and taking a massive financial risk if your truck driver is not validly licensed!

Earlier this week we found a massive wake-up call to fleet operators at the announcement by the RTMC of the large numbers of truck drivers and public transport drivers who are not validly licensed.

In the story titled “Close to half a million freight and public drivers do not qualify to be on South African roads says RTMC” we found some rather alarming statistics on the numbers of illegal drivers on our roads!

Wheels24 also commented on this in a story titled “500 000 ‘pro drivers’; loose without docs”

The Arrive Alive website was asked for comment on we replied with the following:

“What we know would be true is that there is a breach of contract in such an instance between the insurer and the insured client. The insurance contract would be based on the agreement that a roadworthy vehicle will be transported at all times by a legally licensed driver . If these conditions are not complied with the insurer will in my mind have a right to repudiate such a claim should it arise..”

We have since confirmed this with several insurers and would like to share a comment received from the truck insurance experts from Hollard:

“The insurance policy clearly excludes cover for a client where a client is not validly licensed and this would extend as far as the PRDP for trucks and taxi drivers. The Insurer does not even have to prove this was the cause of the claim as the Ombudsman will not assist anyone breaking the law.

On the issue of a roadworthy vehicle most policies actually state the lack of road worthiness must have been material to the claim. For example if a driver’;s tyres are smooth and the vehicles skids after breaking, the claim will not be paid.”

It is also worth noting what Justice Project South Africa has to say on this matter. Howard Dembovsky emphasizes the need for greater enforcement on this matter:

“I completely concur with your assertions on this. Not only may an insurance company repudiate any claim, but I can say with almost absolute certainty that they would. Insurance companies are in the business of minimising their risks and pay-outs and the lack of a PrDP when operating a vehicle of the class that requires one essentially means that the driver is unlicensed to operate the vehicle. What absolutely gobsmacks me though is the fact that the RTMC has made these assertions yet we rarely hear of any law enforcement exercises where HGV drivers are taken to task over this issue.”

Every driver who drives without the required driver license is breaking the law. If negligence has to be established in the event of a road crash, driving without a valid license would be a first step to confirm that the conduct of the driver deviated from that of a reasonable driver. [ The Pinetown truck crash is an example where the license was found to be fraudulent]

It is important to emphasize that your insurance will only cover damages of the driver and vehicle is legally licensed – you will not be able to challenge the insurer who repudiates such an insurance claim  - a risk no transport operator can afford to take!

You are breaking the law and taking a massive financial risk if your truck driver is not validly licensed!

2015 Porsche 911 GTS Images and Information: Massive Hips, Far more Power

Official Pictures and Information

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A function-packed, far more effective 911 variant.

Porsche is sticking to a properly-proven recipe with the GTS versions of its existing 911. As prior to, the brand claims that the GTS models “close the gap” amongst the Carrera S and the delectable GT3. But in reality, the new variant is positioned much closer to the S versions, which its flat-6 eclipses by 30 horsepower. Accessible as a coupe and a cabriolet and with both rear- and all-wheel drive, there is a GTS for nearly absolutely everyone in the lineup, offered they can pay the value of entry—which is significantly greater than the S models ahead of you start accounting for alternatives. The GTS is substantially better equipped than the S, and starts at $ 115,195 for the rear-drive coupe and rises to $ 133,795 for the all-wheel-drive 4 GTS cabriolet.

In addition to the additional energy, GTS automobiles also get the Sport Chrono package, which sharpens the 911′s responses at the push of a button PASM active suspension, which can drop the car by .4 inch a dynamic light method with bi-xenon headlamps and an interior swathed in faux suede and leather.

The added punch of the 430-hp engine pushes the 911 Carrera GTS coupe up to 190 mph in rear-wheel-drive/manual-transmission configuration, 2 mph larger than the 400-hp Carrera S. (The other configurations all attain at least 186 mph.) Acceleration figures increase slightly, with Porsche claiming that coupes hit 60 in 4.2 seconds with the 6-speed stick and 3.8 with the 6-speed dual-clutch PDK automatic cabriolets should turn in 4.4- and 4.-second time slips. Our tests of the a variety of Carrera models indicate those estimates should be accurate inside a tenth or so either way. Folks not fortunate sufficient to be inside will at least be treated to the extra-aggressive sound track of the common sport exhaust system.

Specialists will simply be able to inform the Carrera GTS from its lesser siblings. The front fascia is optional on other 911s, but the black rear air intake, which is created to resemble these on historic 911 models, is exclusive to the GTS. Black 20-inch center-lock wheels are integrated, and even the rear-drive GTS vehicles feature the wider hips of all-wheel-drive vehicles. The RWD models do get their personal exclusive strip that connects the taillights and mimics an air vent cars with 4 driven wheels hold the light band. For these who still don’t know what they’re hunting at, Porsche’;s design and style division has added useful “GTS” stickers to the doors.

Bringing more aggressive aesthetics, significant additional energy, and several extremely desirable possibilities, the GTS is truly a worth-packed Carrera S. In terms of character, it remains a good distance from the intense precision tool that is the race-bred GT3, or the imposing, high-priced, and practically intimidating 911 Turbo. For several consumers, that is a great issue. As with the final-generation GTS, it remains a sort of 911 Carrera concentrate. It is a recipe that has worked very effectively for Porsche and its consumers.

We’ll sign off by mentioning 1 of our favored features of the GTS: its rear badging, which is stretched wide in between the taillights. Could a lack of room for far more lettering clarify why there’s no Targa GTS?

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2015 Audi S3 Sedan: More rapidly Than It’s Massive Bro

Instrumented Test

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Li’;l bro: The Audi S3 sedan has its big brother’;s good looks. But it really is a quicker runner.

So here’s a query for Audi’s marketing division: Why must anybody get an S4 sedan? The new S3 is cheaper, quicker (4.4 seconds to 60!), and, even though this will not trigger a purchasing impulse in everybody, considerably cuter. Sure, it is down a couple of cylinders compared with its bigger brother, and it has to make do with a less sophisticated 4-wheel-drive method. But this is 2014 and the planet is downsizing even the BMW M3 has provided up 2 pots.

Let’s commence with the apparent point that the S3 you are hunting at right here has its steering wheel on the incorrect side and wears a license plate that looks like an eye chart for myopic pensioners. That’s since, though the S3 does not touch down stateside until September (correct about when you are reading this), it is currently on sale in England. So we sourced one particular in the U.K. and arranged to infiltrate a former U.S. airbase to record functionality numbers, then did a whistle-quit tour of ridiculously quaint Shakespearean burgs with names like Kibworth Harcourt and Husbands Bosworth to see which 1 offers the very best black pudding. If you do not know what that is, don’t ask.

You already know the basics: The S3 is the beefy version of the transverse-engined A3 sedan, sharing the Golf’s MQB platform and packing the most strong present iteration of Volkswagen’s familiar EA888 2.-liter 4. That implies 292 horsepower, generally the exact same spec as the forthcoming Golf R. Even though Europe also gets each 3- and 5-door-hatchback versions of the S3, only the sedan will cross the Atlantic. And though Europeans are assisting to save the manuals with a normal 6-speed stick, all U.S. versions will have the 6-speed S tronic dual-clutch automatic that is fitted to our test auto.

The appears are Audi-familiar. Despite carrying its engine sideways and getting virtually 10 inches shorter than an S4, the S3 appears close enough to its sibling that it could almost certainly use its driver’s license as a fake ID. The baby sedan’s hatchback origins are only clear in the relative shortness of its trunklid. With a chunky physique kit, quad exhaust outlets, and the silver mirror surrounds that Audi reserves for S and RS models, it is a handsome small thing—and a measure far more subtle than the Mercedes CLA45 AMG. Regardless of whether or not you feel that is a plus probably depends on how higher you put on your pants. Inside, the cabin is well completed and effectively equipped, even though apart from a flat-bottomed steering wheel and gray instruments (with an ’80s-style digital increase gauge), it feels very equivalent to the normal A3 sedan.

The 292-hp turbocharged 2.-liter 4 muscle tissues the S3 to 60 mph in 4.4 seconds, .5-second quicker than the S4 can handle.

The engine is the highlight. 2 decades ago, engines with the EA888’s distinct output came with turbo lag you could measure in Mississippis, whereas now you have to concentrate difficult to detect it. Push the throttle pedal and there’s a fractional delay as the boost functions by means of the technique, but it is so slight that you couldn’t really describe it as lag. Beyond that, the engine delivers perfectly proportional responses. There’s lots of low-down torque, but the engine enjoys getting revved, even beyond its 6200-rpm power peak. It sounds very good, as well, despite the fact that like the rest of its turbocharged MQB brethren, it cheats slightly with a sound-enhancing loudspeaker on the cowl that supplements the engine’s natural noise.

Continued…

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Warmest day hope prior to massive storm

16/07/14

By Helen Smyth

A powerful summer season storm is threatening to bring flooding to components of the UK this weekend.

The Met Office has issued extreme weather alerts for rain covering most of England and Wales on Saturday.

Torrential downpours, lightning and robust gusts could sweep in a day following temperatures are forecast to attain the 30C mark, with Friday tipped to be the hottest day of the year so far.

Yellow alerts for rain have been place in location for north England, Yorkshire and Humber, the Midlands, East of England, south-west England, London and the South East and parts of Wales.

The Met Workplace stated: “Locations of heavy, thundery showers might create over England and Wales from early on Saturday ahead of moving northwards in the course of the day.

“The improvement of these is uncertain but where they do kind some torrential downpours are attainable with frequent lightning, hail and locally strong gusts.

“Important flooding is feasible where these do happen from surface water as properly as modest, fast responding watercourses.

“The frequent lightning, hail and strong gusts could also be an further hazard. The public need to be aware of the threat of disruption from any of these elements.”

The stormy conditions will dampen the mood throughout what is most likely to be the warmest spell of the year so far.

Temperatures will peak on Friday when the 30C barrier could be reached for the first time this year, with the most probably place to the north-west of London.

Forecasts suggest Britain will be slightly warmer than European holiday destinations such as Barcelona, Ibiza and Nice.

The hottest day so far this year was July 4, when 28.7C (83.7F) was detected in Norfolk and Essex.

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Warmest day hope prior to massive storm