The Powabyke is being hailed by manufacturers as the tight at the end of the tunnel for stressed, traffic-weary Hounslow commuters.

Touted as the answer to traffic queues, pollution, rising petrol prices, parking restrictions and public transport woes, the Powabyke has already been selected for the Journey Zone at the Millennium Dome in Greenwich.

Costing from £499, the battery-powered bicycle is going to revolutionise urban travel, according to Jack Kubis from Pleiades, Electric Bicycles Centre in Wandsworth.

Testing the bike out in busy Chiswick High Road, he said: "The Powabyke doesn't need road tax, can be ridden without a licence, costs nothing to park and will zip around a gridlocked airport at up to 15mph."

It has a range of more than 20 miles, can be recharged anywhere there is an ordinary mains power socket and costs 1,5p per mile to run.

He said: "This a genuine solution to London's nightmare traffic problem. "The Powabyke delivers the best of both worlds, cycling without the sweat and motorised travel without the pollution, traffic jams or stress."

People who never thought they would ride a bike again are proving themselves wrong by riding to work, school, college, the library, down to the shops and even to the pub for a pint.  And if the rider actually wants to pedal the bike, all you do is switch off the key and use it like a normal bicycle.