Pictures of Brighton and Hove taken by bicycle (From The Argus)

Pictures of Brighton and Hove taken by bicycle

12:00pm Wednesday 29th April 2009

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Forget Google's street view – a cyclist has been snapping unsuspecting residents with the help of his unique bicycle.

Kevin Meredith's bright purple bike has a camera fitted to its handlebars which takes a picture every 60 seconds. Photographs are then automatically uploaded to the internet.

Kevin, 30, of Chichester Terrace, Brighton, said: “It takes a picture which can almost immediately be seen on the website. It's live and pictures appear straight away.”

The Purple Pedals Project involves 20 people across the world who have been chosen to road test the bike.

There is only one other in Europe.

Kevin was chosen to take part by staff at the online image hosting site Flickr.

The bike was developed by internet provider Yahoo, which owns Flickr.

They were looking for a photographer who enjoyed cycling to take part in the project.

As a veteran of the London to Brighton bike ride Kevin, a full-time photographer, was the man for the job.

He said: “They wanted someone who was into Flickr and into cycling so they gave me one of the bikes.”

According to Kevin the bike, which is also fitted with a solar panel and GPS tracking system, has been turning heads across Brighton and Hove.

He said: “It does look odd so people do a double-take and then they notice the solar panel and the camera.

“People used to stop all the time when I first got it and said it's a bit strange.

“It even takes pictures when people brush past it and the vibrations trick it into thinking it is moving.”

It also comes in handy when Kevin's wife wants to keep tabs on him.

“She has a quick look on Flickr if she wants to know whether I've left work.”

Kevin said the solar panel powers the camera but its green potential is sometimes let down by the British weather.

“The bike was tested on a sunny day in New York so there have been times over the winter when I've had to plug it in overnight, otherwise it is completely green.

“As long as the sun's shining it's fine.”

If you've seen Kevin heading towards you on his bike and want to know if you've been snapped, all of the pictures are uploaded to http://www.flickr.com/photos/lomokevs_bike/

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