Jeffco entrepreneur to start pedicab service

From Al.com

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Willie Pittman, a former aircraft mechanic and self-described "hedge doctor," is hoping to start a third career as owner and operator of Birmingham's only rickshaw service.

If city officials give him a green light, Pittman plans to start Magicity Pedicabs, offering rides to residents and tourists on a three-wheeled vehicle also known as a pedicab.

Unlike a traditional rickshaw, in which operators transport passengers in carriages pulled by operators on foot, pedicab operators use bicycles to pull the carriages. Pittman already has purchased one pedicab and plans to add several more if his idea wins approval by the City Council.

Although they may be new for Birmingham, pedicab businesses are already operating in big cities such as New York, Chicago and Washington, and in smaller ones such as Oklahoma City, Fort Lauderdale and Salem, Mass.

Greg Duran, a Denver-based pedicab consultant, estimated there are hundreds of such businesses in the U.S. today, ranging in size from a single entrepreneur with one bike to large fleets of 20-100 vehicles.

Although pedicabs have been manufactured in the U.S. since the 1970s, pedicab businesses have become increasingly popular over the last decade because they are environmentally friendly and fun, Duran said.

As businesses have started, many cities have had to deal with issues such as safety, licensing and insurance.

Pittman, 51, said he and a friend got the idea for the business in the 1980s, when Pittman was working as an aircraft mechanic for Lockheed Martin in Marietta, Ga.

"The idea never left me, really."

Pittman, who now runs a seasonal hedge-trimming business from his home in Hoover, said he hopes to operate pedicabs in downtown Birmingham and Southside.

Pedicab operators would wear matching red and black uniforms but would work as independent contractors, leasing vehicles from him.

Pittman said he would also sell advertising space on the outside of the vehicles.

Pittman said pedicabs could be used to transport visitors and locals between the city's Civil Rights destinations, or from hotels or concert venues to their cars.

They could be used for City Stages, weddings and other special events, or just to take downtown workers to lunch.

He said pedicabs would be a novel addition to the Birmingham landscape.

They're so novel, however, that city ordinances contain no provisions for regulating them. The city's transportation and communication committee is working to craft rules for the business.

City Councilwoman Carol Duncan, who chairs the committee, said she is concerned about where pedicabs would operate, especially given Birmingham's hilly terrain and lack of bicycle lanes, and how much they would charge.

But she's optimistic the committee will have a recommendation ready for the full council within several weeks.

Duncan said pedicabs could add an interesting component to a downtown entertainment district.

She said she'd like to see the business up and running in time for the Davis Cup in March.

The committee is scheduled to take up the issue again at 4 p.m. Tuesday.

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Information from: The Birmingham News, http://www.al.com/birminghamnews