Now, tube train-like designs for planes!

September 17th, 2009 Londoners miffed after Tube map ditches ThamesLONDON — London's subway bosses have erased the River Thames. Mayor Boris Johnson on Thursday joined a chorus of disapproval at a new version of the London Underground map that does not show the river, which divides north and south London.

September 14th, 2009 LONDON - A French teenager was so lost sleeping between rail tracks that he did not even realise how close he was to death when a high-speed train passed over him. According to the police, the driver of the TGV train between Paris and Quimper in Brittany noticed the 19-year-old man lying stretched out on his stomach between the rails when the train approached him close to the western town of Vannes.

September 1st, 2009 Train from Prague carries kids who escaped NazisPRAGUE — A vintage train carrying people who escaped the holocaust as children is steaming from Prague to London to mark the 70th anniversary of mass evacuations of children from Czechoslovakia. Sir Nicholas Winton, a Briton, arranged eight trains to carry 669 mostly Jewish children through Germany to Britain at the outbreak of World War II to prevent them from being sent to Nazi concentration camps.

August 24th, 2009 Map reveals London Tube's hottest linesLONDON — A map of the warmest spots of London's subway system was released Monday, revealing what commuters already know: It can get hot on the Tube. The world's oldest subway system is not air conditioned, and as London temperatures reach 30 Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) this summer, commuters crammed into cars often gasp for air each time the doors open to let even more passengers on board.

August 7th, 2009 Ronnie Biggs released from prisonLONDON — One of Britain's most notorious criminals has officially been released from prison. But the family of Ronnie Biggs says the fax which confirmed his freedom won't change much.

August 7th, 2009 Ronnie Biggs awaits official word of freedomLONDON — One of Britain's most notorious criminals is waiting for official word that he is free. But the family of Ronnie Biggs says the fax confirming his release won't change much.

August 6th, 2009 Bird experiment shows Aesop's fable may be trueNEW YORK — From the goose that laid the golden egg to the race between the tortoise and the hare, Aesop's fables are known for teaching moral lessons rather than literally being true. But a new study says at least one such tale might really have happened.

June 25th, 2009 LONDON - Travellers on London's Underground network are finding their anger about delays and overcrowding relieved by philosophical bon mots from great thinkers like Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein and Jean-Paul Sartre. From Thursday, drivers on Piccadilly Line trains will be asked to embellish routine service updates with quotes such as Gandhi's "There is more to life than increasing its speed." While some travellers might find their journeys more thought-provoking, others are bound to frown at the innovation for disrupting their reading habits or music entertainment.

June 25th, 2009 Next London subway stop: spiritual enlightenmentLONDON — The next train is for Heathrow Airport, via Covent Garden, Piccadilly Circus — and spiritual enlightenment. London commuters are being offered the words of great thinkers including Shakespeare, Gandhi and Einstein to enliven their sometimes dull journeys on the city's Tube.

May 28th, 2009 LONDON - British trade unions Thursday threatened a two-day strike over pay and conditions on London's busy Underground (Tube) network next month. Members of the RMT Union voted overwhelmingly for strike action in their dispute with transport employers.

April 23rd, 2009 UK to rule on parole for 'Great Train Robber'LONDON — One of the prime figures in Britain's 1963 "Great Train Robbery" hopes to win release from prison after a parole board hearing Thursday. Ronnie Biggs, 79, is arguing that his severe health problems mean he is no longer a menace.

April 23rd, 2009 Parole Board to rule on 'Great Train Robber' BiggsLONDON — Great Train Robber Ronnie Biggs hopes to be released from prison after a Parole Board hearing detailing his serious health problems. He is famous in England for his role in the 1963 heist known as "The Great Train Robbery," during which he and other gang members stole 2.6 million pounds from a mail train.

April 23rd, 2009 Great Train Robber must wait on parole decisionLONDON — A parole board adjourned Thursday without deciding whether to release Ronnie Biggs, an ailing veteran of the "Great Train Robbery" who wants to spend his final years with his son. The Parole Board of England and Wales said a decision should be reached by July, when Biggs would have served the 10 years necessary to qualify for parole.

April 18th, 2009 LONDON - Scientists are working on ways to build a gossamer-thin space sail or "aerobrake" that would help bring back a used rocket back to Earth safely. According to a report in New Scientist, space-flight engineers Max Cerf and Brice Santerre at the European aerospace firm EADS Astrium have put the idea forward.

March 31st, 2009 LONDON - It's time to bid adieu to those traditional washing machines that required you to make multiple rounds of the bathroom carrying that basket of dirty clothes, thanks to a Wi-Fi washing basket that would do all your laundry on its own. The see-through basket would automatically start when the dirty clothes placed in the basket hit a certain weight.