GAS company Transco has taken a team of emergency engineers out of their vans and put them on motorbikes. The company has bought three Honda ST1100 bikes - as used by the police, ambulance service paramedics and the AA - to be used for a six-month trial in London.

The idea is to improve gas escape response times in areas of heavy traffic and, if the trial is successful, engineers in congested areas across the country could be given motorbikes instead of vans.

The team of five, who will use the bikes on a shift basis, previously drove LDV 200 vans which, along with Vauxhall Combos, make up the rest of the fleet. They now patrol central London receiving emergency calls via a hands-free telephone link and microphone inside their helmets. Detection equipment is carried in panniers.