On 23 Apr, 12:23, Tom Anderson wrote:

On Wed, 23 Apr 2008, Mizter T wrote:

On 23 Apr, 09:02, Boltar wrote:

(snip)

I'm not surprised. Could you imagine the piston effect that would have?
People waiting on platforms would be blown down the tunnel

How about we just ditch the trains and install massive fans to create
public wind tunnel transportation - people could just jump in and out
of the airflow.

This has been semi-seriously proposed in relation to cycle lanes - since
the main limit on bike speed is air drag, if you move the air at 10 mph in
the direction of travel (involving putting the cycle lane in a tube), you
give everyone a 10 mph speed boost.

Ha, I haven't come across that idea before! It has to be said that
when the air is moving at 10mph against the direction of travel, or
indeed perpendicular to the direction of travel, cycling can be damn
hard work. Still, it's all good for you - a friend used that very same
philosophy when he came by a large number of knobbly off-road tyres
and used them for his on-road cycle commute - "it's just going to make
me harder"!

Incidentally, whilst we're on the topic of cycle innovations, have you
come across this:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/te...00/7340963.stm


The alternative would be to turn the tunnels into massive water flumes,
so we'd have something akin to a water park under central London. Now
that does sound like a good idea!

Ahem.

http://groups.google.co.uk/group/uk....owse_thread/th...

And that wasn't even the first time i suggested it, ISTR.


Even as I was typing I was thinking 'this is a very Tom Anderson thing
to say, I bet he's said it already'!

Though your suggestion above is for canals - I was thinking more along
the lines of passengers being issued with rubber rings and the water
in the tunnel being propelled along to give a rapids-like effect,
perhaps with a pool at each station so one could get out.

Man it's a shame there aren't any water parks in London or the
surrounds these days!