Street View rolls out nationwide

Google's Street View service has been available in 25 cities in Britain for some time, but the company is about to announce a major expansion - to the entirety of the UK - more than 238,000 miles of road.

In 2006, the Ordnance Survey concluded that the UK has 246,988 miles of road, giving an impressive coverage of 96.36%. Google has managed to send its cars down some of the most remote rural roads in Britain - from Penzance all the way up to the Shetland Islands. And it'll have to do it again in 6 months' time.

Ed Parsons, Google's geospatial technologist, said: "With so many practical applications it's no wonder that over two thirds of people who had tried the service said they would use Street View again" - referring to the legions of people who use the service to househunt and get directions.

Still, we doubt the service will be rolling out in Broughton in Buckinghamshire, whose residents chased the Street View car out of town with flaming torches and pitchforks about a year ago.