Amphibious Car Beats Urban Congestion

woodhouse writes "According to BBC News, a company in the UK have just tested a fully amphibious car on the Thames river. It can travel at up to 100 miles an hour on land, and its wheels fold up to allow it to speed across water at 30mph, propelled by a jet. The company responsible, Aquada, suggest it's a good way to avoid congestion."

Comments

Re:It's a convertible?

[RussGarrett]

I dunno why they say that - the Thames speed limit is 8 knots above Wandsworth, and even below there they can stop you if they think you're affecting other craft.

Empty rivers...

[madprof]

Many rivers in the UK have speed limits far lower than the 30mph top speed of this vehicle to stop bank erosion, and why do they insist in the article that the Thames is underused?
There are lots of boats on the Thames already - often rowers in lightweight crew boats that swamp easily. They can do without tidal waves being generated.

Re:Empty rivers...

[dcollis]

I currently row on the river for my university in an 8 (one of the more stable rowing boats) and we already have problems being washed down by other boats. And thats at 6 in morning. During the day the problems increase. I'd say there was already plenty of traffic on the thames. If there is going to be more usage of the thames, then water bus/taxis should be the answer. In sydney this system works extremely well.

Re:And in 40 years...

[vidarh]

No big ships use the Thames anymore, at least not up as far as London. Docklands, what used to be some of the largest docks in Europe, have mostly been converted to luxury offices and housing. Large ships dock further east, as cheap train and road transport made the London docks uneconomical.

As for rough water, you won't find much of that either on the Thames around London

People would be mostly competing with a few barges and small tourist boats.

Re:The problems of British industry

[Moderation abuser]

Internal Combustion Engine
Jet Engine
Electric Motor
Television
Disc Brakes
Depth Charges
Fax Machine
Lightbulbs
World Wide Web
Viagra
Vacuum Cleaner
Toilet Paper

etc etc etc...

Yeah, the problem with the British is that they keep inventing these unaffordable, impractical things...

Re:pollution ?

[KDan]

It could. Back before they built the sewers in the 1850s or so, the sewage from two and a half million people went into the thames - which is a tidal river at that point. So you have 2.5mil ppl's crap going up and down the thames with the tide. They got outbreaks of cholera from that because the water companies just pumped that water and distributed that to people - drinking beer exclusively was a good plan in those days.

They finally decided to fund the sewers (a gigantic project, and very well done since the original sewers are still in use today) when the thames stank so bad that the MP's couldn't even get into the river-facing rooms of the house of parliament without choking from the awful stench (apparently comparable to the smell of a rotting body).

I'd say that was worse than now.

Daniel

Re:pollution ?

[blane.bramble]

Have you seen it, or are you spouting a knee-jerk reaction because "everyone knows it's polluted"? It's considered one of the cleanest: Comparison of the Thames and the Severn

Re:pollution ?

[AlecC]

The Thames has been massively cleaned up over the last 50 years. Yes, it is generally brown in colour; this is suspended sediment and not pollution. Fifty years ago it was essentially dead; recently the counted (I think) over fifty species in it, including salmon and seal. Not that it couldn't do with a bit more cleaning up, but it is enormously improved.

Which means that it could do without a load of speedboat/cars on it.