On the more eclectic scale of renewable energy concepts was to harness the power of walking. By not having a completely fixed pathway, a pavement could rest upon dampers that could harness the kinetic energy of the pathway generated by people walking up and down the street. If you don’t think the energy generated by a few people walking down a street is anything considerable, cast your mind back to the design of the millennium bridge and how resonance almost brought an £18m bridge into the Thames below it. Judging by the increased footfall in London yesterday you’d be hard stretched to charge your phone on the energy generated by the capital’s commuters and tourists.
Plans announced last month to bring office workers back into the workplace as of August seem not to have been heeded by England’s capital. I have noticed my tube becoming increasingly crowded making my way into Bank station of a morning. But only by perhaps three or four people. Official observations yesterday saw a 2% increase week-on-week of the number of people on London’s streets. That leaves the pitter patter of Londoners’ steps 68% dimmer than the same time last year.
Many eat and drinkeries remain closed in the capital with fewer patrons and locations available for helping out by eating out. The typical jobs of the City of London have befitted working from home with financial services facing an easier task of working from a home office than many occupations. However, with some 2.9m people in the UK employed by the multi-billion Pound hospitality industry, a return to a connected civilisation will be important to maintaining a sustainable economic recovery.
Despite the encouragement back to towns and cities across the UK, a British Chamber of Commerce survey revealed 62% of companies expected some or all of their employees to be working remotely for the next year. Across the UK yesterday there was optimistic data coming from the eat out to help out scheme. Many restaurants, particularly in urban areas, reported increased footfall and receipts thanks to the introduction of the eat out to help out scheme. The short duration of the scheme remains a concern for the hospitality sector with the incentive scheme in place for the month of August only and to the tune of just £500m. GBP unphased by the social developments so far with a moderate consolidation versus the USD following a tremendous month of July.
Discussion and Analysis by Charles Porter
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