Three about Boris Johnson

For US readers, Boris Johnson is the bike riding mayor of London. I'll freely admit that I don't know much else about the man, although he does get some discussion on "Politics Weekly", the Guardian weekly (natch) political podcast. I noticed that I had saved a couple of different stories about Mr. Johnson and since I'm not in a position to write extensively about any of them, here they are all at once.

Boris Johnson unveils blueprint for London's 'cycling revolution' - article outlines the mayor's announcement of a bike share program for London with an aim of 6000 bikes at 400 stations about 300 meters apart. Quote the Mayor:

"Much like hailing a cab, people will be able to pick up one of 6,000 bikes, and zip around town to their heart's content – not only a quick, easy, and healthy option, but one that will also make London a more liveable city."

Boris Johnson's 'near-death experience' with lorry caught on camera - a disconcerting article describing how a ride intended to show the transport minister and a deputy some sites for bike "super highways" the Mayor hopes to bring to London almost came to a catastrophic end. From the article:

In what is being described as the mayor's "near-death experience", the lorry's back door then suddenly flew open, dragged a parked car into the street and smashed into another – just feet from Johnson, Adonis and Ranger.

Most of it was caught on CCTV, and the article ends with an aide to Mr. Johnson making the incident an argument for the bikeways he (Johnson) is pushing for.