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| Britain |
| London to get bombproof recycling bins that give news, weather |
| 2008-11-03 |
| LONDON'S financial district will get bombproof recycling bins from next year, the company that makes them says. The bins, which cost around £30,000 ($72,000) each, will also feature news and weather information on LCD screens. "From a blast technology side, it's just something that should be there," said Brian James of Media Metrica, the company providing the product. Media Metrica will fund the production, installation and maintenance of the bins after signing a 15-year contract with the City of London, the local authority that administers the British capital's financial district. Mr James said the company was in talks with potential corporate sponsors, and expected to finalise those arrangements by the end of March 2009, with the bins being installed by the end of next year in around 100 locations. "It's a pretty expensive product to produce, because as you can imagine, the blast technology is basically military technology," he said. "It's very expensive to put in." The bins are made of a steel composite that would absorb the force and fire of any potential explosion. Mr James said that while the company would be interested in installing the recycling bins on London Underground stations, it was more focused on discussions with other major cities such as New York, Singapore and Tokyo. There are very few rubbish bins in the City of London. Most were removed in the early to mid-1990s after IRA attacks in the capital over fears that bombs could be concealed in them. Other public areas regarded as sensitive, such as footpaths outside parliament and civil service buildings, also lack rubbish bins. |
| Posted by:Oztralian |
| #2 Let's have gather around possible bomb containers. Brilliant! |
| Posted by: ed 2008-11-03 19:21 |
| #1 maybe they can incorproate benches so that pensioners can congregate and discuss the day's activities.... |
| Posted by: USN, Ret. 2008-11-03 17:15 |