The London Hydraulic Power Company originally existed to distribute hydraulic power to small scale industry (for example hydraulic equipment at docks). The company was formed in 1871, however one of its most important assets was to become the Tower Subway. The Tower Subway had been built as a passenger transport system only a few years before. The London Hydraulic Power Company's network was almost 200 miles long at its peak. In 1981 the old network was purchased by a consortium, which included Rothschild and Trident. When the UK's telecommunication market opened up to greater competition, the network was used by cable companies to give them good access to the City of London, which is where the majority of big business is located. The Tower Subway is currently the only privately owned tunnel under the river Thames.
When Randolph Stark first contacted me last year I was suprised that the old New York system had not already been put into use for modern telecommunications. In London, for example, much of the old telegraph conveyor system is thought to have been converted to carry cable in the 1960s. Also, as nick255, comments below, Mercury Communication managed to build up a modest city network almost overnight by using the old London Hydraulic Power Company pipeline network.
Quite. Glad it made you think. Although pizzas aside, most household groceries can be repacked to fit into pipes. Actually using pneumatic capsule pipelines for distributing groceries is problematic because of the bumpy ride. Some of the magnetic based technologies might be more suitable, but those need a lot of technological research to be done. Even then you have to overcome problems related to the requirement for networks. Still, I think in an ideal world its just as logical as delivering water, electricity and communications to the home by pipe (and yes, a cable is basically a pipe when you think about what it is doing).
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The London Hydraulic Power Company originally existed to distribute hydraulic power to small scale industry (for example hydraulic equipment at docks). The company was formed in 1871, however one of its most important assets was to become the Tower Subway. The Tower Subway had been built as a passenger transport system only a few years before. The London Hydraulic Power Company's network was almost 200 miles long at its peak. In 1981 the old network was purchased by a consortium, which included Rothschild and Trident. When the UK's telecommunication market opened up to greater competition, the network was used by cable companies to give them good access to the City of London, which is where the majority of big business is located. The Tower Subway is currently the only privately owned tunnel under the river Thames.
When Randolph Stark first contacted me last year I was suprised that the old New York system had not already been put into use for modern telecommunications. In London, for example, much of the old telegraph conveyor system is thought to have been converted to carry cable in the 1960s. Also, as nick255, comments below, Mercury Communication managed to build up a modest city network almost overnight by using the old London Hydraulic Power Company pipeline network.
Quite. Glad it made you think. Although pizzas aside, most household groceries can be repacked to fit into pipes. Actually using pneumatic capsule pipelines for distributing groceries is problematic because of the bumpy ride. Some of the magnetic based technologies might be more suitable, but those need a lot of technological research to be done. Even then you have to overcome problems related to the requirement for networks. Still, I think in an ideal world its just as logical as delivering water, electricity and communications to the home by pipe (and yes, a cable is basically a pipe when you think about what it is doing).