Japanese Bike storage

[Jakob]

http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=4347

This is pretty impressive. 100yen is about 50p, so less than £10 for a 1 month pass...and you don't have to bother with locks, etc. (Although the locks on Japanese bikes are mostly symbolic anyway).

[Hot Flatus]

A variation on their car parks then

Click

[Zipperhead]

A variation on their car parks then

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/iObpUbQYy4g&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/iObpUbQYy4g&rel=1</a>

There is (or used to be) a car park like that in London. I think it was in Savile Row.

[clarion]

Wow!  Impressive!  And quite a small unit, too.  Can you imagine a few of those franchised near key points in London?  Gosh yes.

Shame if you've got a 'bent or a trike, tho

[andygates]

Teh awesome.  It's a tape-picker robot on giant-robot steroids!

And it would free up the outdoors parking for weird machines

Alas local gov here would be terrified that Osama bin Riding would makey boom, so it'll have to be private industry!   

[Chris S]

*Tuggo turns up with Trike*

"Waddya mean, 'Your kind aren't welcome here' ?"

[Manotea]

Teh awesome.  It's a tape-picker robot on giant-robot steroids!

My very thought, except the first automated tape library I worked with had the tapes sitting on a revolving carousel and a freestanding industrial robotic arm to pick the tape, bung it in the drive and press 'play' (ok, I made the last bit up).

Can you just imagine something like that being built here. Ever? Actually that sounds a bit defeatist. Lets just say, wouldn't it be great when we get to the point when a system like that is viable for deployment over here.

[andygates]

Maybe if we suggest to a private operator like, say, a train company that they could free up a huge bike-parking space and do something more... profitable with it (like renting it out to espresso and noodle bars).

[Chris S]

Lets just say, wouldn't it be great when we get to the pont when a system like that is viable for deployment over here.

I'd say there's a good chance of it. After all - you have the devil's own job of taking your bike on the train, so you've got to leave it somewhere...

[Manotea]

Maybe if we suggest to a private operator like, say, a train company that they could free up a huge bike-parking space and do something more... profitable with it (like renting it out to espresso and noodle bars).

Alas, Eurostar has already found a more immediate and cost effective solution.