I can see a possible flaw in this one...

Volvo have apparently come up with a radar gadget that can apply the brakes if you approach a cyclist (or pedestrian) too closely. This is supposedly a last resort after the car lights up light a Christmas tree inside and sounds an aggravating buzzer to get a drivers attention. They claim it will save lives...
Mail.

Volvo has launched a revolutionary safety device that scans for cyclists and automatically brakes if a collision is imminent.
The Swedish car firm says the camera and radar-guided technology, which is being introduced into cars from May, could save hundreds of lives.
The system comprises a radar scanner in the grille, a camera fitted in front of the rear-view mirror, and an onboard computer. It allows the car to identify cyclists who swerve into its path and reacts by slamming on the brakes.

Can anyone imagine the insurance fiasco that will erupt when someone blames the automatic braking system for a tail end smash? Or a claim that said they were distracted by "a loud audible warning and a visible warning of a row of red lights flashing up on the windscreen?" Modern cars are actually a lot safer for drivers as well as pedestrians and cyclists as they contain many features designed to crumple and absorb impacts as well as smoothed surfaces. What they can't do is account for a pedestrian or cyclist doing something stupid and I suspect this device may just cause more problems than it purports to resolve. It's pointless having the car brake to avoid the cyclist in front if a cyclist behind runs into you nor would I expect any distractions flashing up on the windscreen be anything other than a serious distraction for the driver. they may actually be illegal.
Still I do wonder if this is the first step in nanny statism for drivers to be removed from the process of actually doing any driving at all. Self steering? Sat Nav auto drive? Just sit in the back and let the machine do it all for you...
Why is life becoming so terribly joyless?

So why do we pay Road tax?

Rhetorical question I know, I suspect we all know it's just a means to fill the governments coffers, after all if they spent all they took in on the actual roads we'd have the best transport system in the world bar none...
As it is, they keep looking for ways to dip their hands in our pockets again and again to pay for transport infrastructure, rather than taking the money from the fund that's actually supposed to pay for these things...
BBC.

A new Thames crossing could be built without spending public money, Kent County Council (KCC) says.
Paul Carter, KCC leader, said the council had been in discussions with companies in Canada over plans to build the crossing using private funding.
He said many of Canada's road were funded by income from tolls.
In 2011, the government said a new crossing would alleviate congestion at the Dartford Crossing tolls caused by "the success" of the M25.
"They do a 'fund design build and operate' scheme in Canada which has been an enormous success," Mr Carter said.

All well and good, but as I've pointed out above we already do pay 'public' money into the road fund license and that's the money which should (all) be spent on new infrastructure, rather than be pissed up the wall in MP's expenses and green lunacy with the rest of our taxes. They can't even keep their promises on the tolls they grab from other projects such as the Dartford crossing which initially was supposed to suspend tolls after the damned thing was paid for but several years after it was paid for we're still paying. Plus no-one believed the local councils claims that somehow or other they had to keep the barriers in place as a traffic calming method, nor the governments statement that the toll money would be spent in the county on other roads...
I rather suspect that the Canadian companies assuming they want to get involved with UK politics and taxation will do a reasonable job, but then as in all these schemes milk us for the rest of our lives maxing out their profits, not that I have a problem with companies making profits, I just have a problem with government both local and national pissing down my back whilst telling me that it's raining Which is exactly what this is, just another tax grab on top of the road fund license...

Nearcations

It has always struck me as odd that the MSM can be surprised by what the general public will get up too, particularly when it makes common sense...
Telegraph.

Hard up British holidaymakers have sparked a new travel trend for getting away from it all - just not too far away from it all, an industry study shows.
Analysts have nicknamed it 'the nearcation' because it usually involves a destination within a couple of hours drive from home.
It could be a traditional romantic getaway for couples or parents to urbanites escaping the city for a couple of days to an overnight trip to the seaside with the family.
Soaring petrol prices and rail fares mean long trips to resorts within the UK, the so called 'staycation', are too expensive for many families on a budget, said market analysts Mintel.
Instead, the staycation has simply evolved into the nearcation as a way for families or couples to get away from it all for a couple of days without having to travel too far.

Clearly a case of see a trend, invent a word. Yet what they probably don't realise is the sheer wealth of things to see within an hour or two of your home. Take as an example, I live near Chatham, not the most scenic town in the UK, but within a few minutes of me I have a dockside museum, a Napoleonic era fort, miles and miles of country walks, river estuaries, castles, cathedrals, the home of Dickens and that's just off the top of my head. There are a lot more things to see within an hour of me too and I suspect that it's the same for everyone, we look to far off places and ignore (until economic reality kicks in) the treasures close to home. There is an absolute wealth of history and beauty around us just waiting to be explored and it's worth taking a look at.
I don't blame people for wanting to see far off places or even head for the sun, but that shouldn't blind us to what's right in front of our eyes. Perhaps the economic downturn will be a bit of a blessing in certain respects after all.