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The Spectator on Boris Johnson’s new bicycle-sharing scheme

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Douglas Murray

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Boris Johnson’s new bicycle-sharing scheme has had its share of ‘teething problems’, as the Mayor himself admits. Some Londoners have had to be refunded, for instance, after they were overcharged by the complicated bike ‘docking’ system. But it’s a tribute to Boris that Londoners have taken the difficulties in their stride as part of the general fun, and with their jolly, chunky design, the London bikes could become icons of the capital — thought of as fondly as red buses or black cabs.

Boris’s cycling revolution has begun: bright blue ‘cycle superhighways’ come next, and a new unit of bicycling bobbies. The bicycle-sharing scheme is a cheering reminder that even on a budget, even in these sceptical times, an imaginative politician can still have good ideas.