Skip to main content

Cycling in chains?

In France an unusual cycle race has been held, for prisoners. Some 200 felons have been allowed out of the prison walls to race bicycles around the country, while under close watch from prison guards. This 2,300km race is no easy saunter around the park however, starting in the historic city of Lille, passing through 17 towns along the way and finishing in capital Paris. The aim of this unusual project is to help the men reintegrate into society by fostering values such as effort, teamwork and self-esteem,
February 29, 2012 Read time: 1 min
In France an unusual cycle race has been held, for prisoners. Some 200 felons have been allowed out of the prison walls to race bicycles around the country, while under close watch from prison guards. This 2,300km race is no easy saunter around the park however, starting in the historic city of Lille, passing through 17 towns along the way and finishing in capital Paris. The aim of this unusual project is to help the men reintegrate into society by fostering values such as effort, teamwork and self-esteem, according to the organisers.

Related Content

  • Huge programme to develop parking infrastructure in Moscow being introduced
    March 19, 2012
    Moscow's Directorate for Investment Project Support and Participatory Construction Oversight (Moskomstroyinvest) has introduced a huge programme for developing parking space in the Russian capital. It provides for the construction of at least two million parking spaces in the city by 2025.
  • Road marking system providers’ latest technology in-demand
    April 3, 2014
    The latest road marking systems from leading manufacturers are in demand in Europe, Africa, the Middle East and South America. Guy Woodford reports Ennis-Flint recently saw its Third Generation Waterborne Fast Dry Paint with low VOC applied on a Portuguese motorway by Trafiurbe and F.L Gaspar, two of the country’s leading contractors. The line marking is said to have been applied in response to demands from Portuguese authorities for higher specifications of line markings across the country’s highway net
  • Expectations for growth of UAE infrastucture
    February 9, 2012
    The INTERMAT Middle East event is being launched at a pivotal time of major infrastructure development in the region. As with most sectors, the highways industry has not had a fantastic 18 months in the Gulf. Not only has the recession impacted the delivery of projects across the board, GCC Governments' attention have been switching increasingly to rail, as plans to roll out a Gulf-wide rail system gather steam. GCC countries will invest over US$119.6 billion in infrastructure projects over the next decade
  • Rebuilding a historic bridge linking the US and Canada
    March 8, 2016
    While many road authorities in North America are finding it difficult to stretch their bridge assets beyond half a century, one bridge is closing in on its centenary - David Arminas reports The international Peace Bridge, connecting the Canadian province of Ontario with the US state of New York, is 88 years young this year, and still going strong.