Unhappy cabbie in Perth

Uh oh! Looks like cabbies in Perth, Australia are unhappy with pedicabs now. "Waaaa... They're stealing my fares!" Read the blog post on Bytes from the Backseat.

Sold! to the highest bidder

Found this story on a blog by Monica Alonzo-Dunsmoor for the Arizona Republic.

What can five bucks get you in downtown Phoenix?

A pedicab ride. (I'm sure that's what you guys were thinking, too.)

Yeah, downtown is riddled with construction, which makes for a bumpy ride. And really, the weather is perfect for a stroll. But take a ride and you can hear some interesting tales of downtown night life.

Here's a quick one from Earl, a pedicab driver:

Earl is riding past a downtown pub just in time to witness a bar fight. Two guys toss (literally) a third man out of the bar and proceed with some throttling. The outnumbered guy jumps into Earl's pedicab and says, “I'll give you 10 bucks, just get me outta here.” Earl starts cranking it when he hears one of the men at the bar yell out, “I'll give you $25 if you bring him back!”

Earl, clearly a virtuous man, only hit the brakes momentarily before continuing his pedaling.

Update on issues in NYC

This video of Pedicab Owners Assoc. President George Bliss at a recent League of Humane Voters meeting discusses some of the additional pedicab regulations considered in NYC. Cap on the number of pedicabs, no electric assist, etc.

Note: pay attention to the arguement that pedicabs cause pollution.

Funny that this is a LOHV meeting - their interest in the pedicab issue is their dislike of horse-drawn carriages because their inhumane.

Thanks for the link Poop City (http://poopcity.typepad.com/poop_city/) and LOHV (http://www.humanenyc.org/).

Pedicabs on Ink Doodles

Thought you might enjoy the illustrations of pedicabs by Jason Crosby, a freelance illustrator and designer based in Greenville, South Carolina.

Snowy Pedicabs - Part II

Snow continued to fall. This photo was taken on New Year's Eve after the Broncos game. The police told us the pedicabs could get through this path. Rrrrrriiiiiigggggttttt...

Monty Python -- Bicycle Repair Man

MY HERO!!!

Driver for Mile High Pedicabs on American Idol

We saw her last night - just a glimpse - at the end of the auditions show for American Idol in Memphis, TN (This morning I looked through 521 photos to find this one- #514)!

Yes, it's true - Tami Gosnell, one of our pedicab drivers, made it to Hollywood on this season's American Idol! We don't know much more than that, since everything is pretty hush-hush. But she seemed to be spending an awful lot of time caring for her sick grandmother. We knew she was auditioning again and we did get a couple phone calls verifying that she actually is a pedicab driver.

At her brother's urging, Tami auditioned last season, but didn't take it too seriously (singing the Oscar Mayer Weiner song). She made it through a couple levels of screening, but not to the Randy/Paula/Simon audition. This season, they didn't hold auditions in Denver, so she went to Memphis to try it again.

This isn't our first brush with American Idol. In Season 5, the son of one of our friends (Kay Young) made it to the finals - Ace Young. It was fun getting updates on his activities, watching and voting every week, and celebrating his successes. I wonder what advice he would have for her now.

We're very proud of Tami and are excited to follow her through the season. We wish her the very best and are confident she'll be the next American Idol!

Watch for Tami from Denver and be sure to vote!

Pedicabs at a snowy Broncos game

For those of you who wonder if pedicabs can run year-round, check out these photos from the Denver Broncos game on December 24, 2006 - right after our first blizzard of the season that racked up over 2 feet of snow in the Denver-metro area. Looks like fun!

Pedicab blog from Buffalo NY

Thomas Woods of Buffalo Bike Taxi Co. in Buffalo, NY purchased his Main Street Pedicab at the end of April 2005. He documents his activities riding around the city, including weather info, on his blog at BikeBlog.us. When you check out some of his posts, you may find that he has many of the same challenges and opportunities we have in Denver.

Thomas is a bike enthusiast, so you'll also find lots of information about cycling in the city (Buffalo and elsewhere).

kafeengrrl remarks on NY Taxi video

I wanted to pass on this reply to my post at Rickshaw Forum on a thread about the NY Taxi anti-pedicab video -- from kafeengrrl, a driver in NYC.

if one takes a good look at the points in the video, they pull in other targets for their main complaint. It was said in the video that pedicabs (and liveries) are steling work. The support comes from the law they quote regarding street hails and their exclusive right to make those pick ups.

The argument in translation means simply to me that they are making the claim that "pedicabs are stealing work." Last I checked, I could not compete with the price of a taxi. There has to be something else that the passenger in a pedicab is looking for -- perhaps the "fresh air" or just to try something different than a ratty old backseat of a car? Our bikes are clean and colorful. They are attractive and lot of people are willing to pay more for that over the meter. There are times, though I don't often like to admit it, that I just can't drive that far for that price. I wish my legs could keep up the way I do on a bicycle, but that's not what the velotaxi was designed to do. Those that really want a ride are seeking the alternative to the taxi, they raise their hand, and it happens to be that a bike taxi pulls over. They soon learn that it costs more, unless they already knew, and some get in the cab anyway.... To twist a popular advertising commercial quote, "Low prices are ^not just the beginning." The city wants us here.

If sales are dropping, lets look at the real stigma that causes taxicab streetside hails to drop? Constant talk of rising taxi fares? Gas surcharges? Increased use of subways in response to the rising taxi price? I suspect that these have caused more of an issue for taxicab sales than a few 400 estimated pedicabs. But the MTA (subway) is invincible so why would taxicabs take on the MTA?

Most pedicabs are looking for a certain kind of customer that is willing to take a ride -- we have "seemingly similar" interests above ground, but most of my customers last summer would not have taken the taxicab and walked if I wasn't right there.

One other point to be made on the video for me, and it matters to me a lot. Did anyone count the number of bike lane violations committed by taxicabs and liveries in this video. The street hail has become a big danger to messengers, commuters, and anyone else who has the exclusive right to use that lane. Taxicabs, in practicing their exclusive right to pickup street hails, have been long time violators for using the bike lane. Their doors are not like those on the curb that when opened push you into traffic. Instead the customer typically stands in the lane and pulls the door completely into the bike lane. To go around these obstacles is not like a parked car. Sometimes they are halfway covering the bike lane from the right side and the customer takes care of the rest. That means to go around would force bikers across two lanes (bike lane and first "car lane") to dodge the obstruction. Count them up the number of times this happens for yourself... I have at least ten violations in the video alone without really focusing on it first viewing. I honestly drive in the middle of the street on the bicycle. It turns out to be more predictable at that speed. I am convinced that i am going to die on a bike lane if i spend too much time in them.

Pedicabs in MD? We'll see 'bout that

A resident of Frederick MD proposes bringing pedicabs into the city, but the city's Taxicab Commission isn't so sure. Concerns about traffic congestion and direct competition with motorized taxis are prevalent in the article in the Maryland newspaper.

Resident pitches "pedicabs" proposal to city

NY Taxi anti-pedicab video

Posted on YouTube on December 22, this video is an example of the whining going on in NYC. What are they planning now?

Never lose sight of your inner child

Experiencing the magic of a pedicab ride with a child can make anyone feel young. Just read the post below from NYC.

Phooey! Let that be my first blogged word of 2007: Phooey! Because my computer just froze up and I lost my post, the one I spent over an hour writing, a beautiful (if I do say so myself), lovingly detailed post about the week Mermaid Girl and I just spent in New York, with special attention lavished on our evening out on the town during which MG haggled with some pedicab drivers and got us a ride from Rockefeller Center to Times Square for $6, which was the best $6 I ever spent (actually I didn't spend it, she did), and the most harrowing, thrilling ride I've ever been on.

Afterwards I forgot how terrified I was that we'd be in a terrible car accident (what with the bumping over potholes and swerving in and out of lanes and through red lights etc.) and told MG that night around midnight when we were finally tucked in to bed that it was my favorite part of the day, and she was surprised because for most of the evening I'd maintained firmly that we were ABSOLUTELY NOT going on a bicycle cab ride, not when I'd just taken her out for tea at Alice's Tea Cup and for a carriage ride through Central Park and then down to Rockefeller Center to look at the tree and the skaters and then let her buy a whirly light-up thing and wave it around among the crowds.

But I'd forgotten all about that, that it was something she'd whined and nagged for and we only had that whirlwind ride through the middle of the city with the wind in our hair and cars and bright lights flashing all around us because I finally caved and said okay, okay, if she could find someone to take us for the money she had, we could do it.

All I remembered was the ride, and the way MG's eyes lit up as she took it all in, the lights reflected on her face.

Phooey! from Travels in Booland

What's your New Year's resolution?

I'm always curious about people and their New Year's resolutions. (Must be the psychologist in me.) George Clooney gave the typical noncommittal answer: "I resolved a long time ago to never make New Year's resolutions."

All the holiday sales commercials have been replaced by miraculous ways to get in shape, lose weight and stop smoking. Health clubs and personal trainers know that the next couple of months are the busiest of the year. They oversell their memberships, banking on the majority dropping out after a few weeks or months.

Of those who resolve to lose weight, quit smoking, get more exercise, eat more vegetables, eat less sugar, get more sleep, get more done, drink less coffee, drink more water, be a better person, or whatever... how many actually keep their resolutions? Beyond the first hour, first day, first week?

So what's your New Year's resolution?

Pedicabs help ring in the New Year

Happy New Year!

Pedicabs are out in Denver and ringing in 2007! After 2 challenging snow storms, our drivers were still out delivering people to parties and celebrations tonight. Families, couples and friends enjoyed 2 fireworks shows along the Sixteenth Street Mall at 9 pm and midnight. As in previous years, Mile High Pedicabs was there.

In addition to the New Year's Eve events, the city also hosted a Broncos football game (unfortunately the last one until next season), and a Nuggets basketball game. All the activity made for an interesting and challenging day downtown.

(Photo by Dan Byrd for the Downtown Denver Partnership)