by Daniel DeBolt
The latest form of transit in downtown Mountain View may be low-tech, but it also seems a perfect fit for these modern times, being easy on both the environment and the pocketbook.
A company calling itself KwickCart has started operating two pedal-powered taxis, or pedicabs, around the downtown area on weekend evenings, taking people to and from their homes, businesses and the downtown train station. Passengers pay nothing but a tip, which drivers solely rely on for their wages.
The company makes its money by displaying advertising on each of its three-wheeled cabs, which can hold two passengers -- three if they're small.
Last weekend, KwickCart began a weekly service between 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights in which two pedicabs operate downtown simultaneously. Before launching the regular service, the company tested the waters during the city's Art and Wine Festival and Thursday Night Live events held downtown last year.
So far it is hard to tell how much demand there is, but founder and president Caanan Meagher said that "We expect Mountain View will be one of our busiest cities." The company already operates pedicabs in Campbell and Los Gatos.
"The most common thing so far is people want a ride to or from their house," Meagher said. "People that live maybe five blocks away -- maybe they live on Calderon and want a ride to Castro call us up to get a ride."
Meagher said his "environmentally friendly" business is trying to become certified by the county as a green business. There isn't much room to improve in this regard, but he said "We need to make sure we're printing on both sides of our paper."
To arrange a ride in a KwickCart pedicab, call (408) 858-2278. The company has a Web site at www.kwickcart.com, as well as a Facebook page.
Tuesday, January 19
City Hopes Project Will Keep Cruise Ship Industry Afloat
by 10News.com
SAN DIEGO -- Tourists hitting the high seas pump $500 million into San Diego's economy every year, but in 2009 San Diego's cruise ship industry took a hit.
Business owners said sales increase 30 percent when a cruise ship unloads thousands of passengers. The Port of San Diego said one cruise ship puts about $2 million into the local economy every time it docks.
Vendors along the Embarcadero said they noticed a dip this year, and some told 10News they depend heavily on the foot traffic generated by the people getting off and on the cruise ships.
The owners of Destinations in Seaport Village told 10News they see a 30 percent jump in sales whenever a ship is in port. "It's always extremely busy, super crowded," said Destinations salesperson Melissa Cena.
Some pedicabs focus all of their business in the cruise ship docking area. One pedicab can take home $150 off one cruise ship.
"I'd say 90 percent of the business that I do is from the cruise ship," said pedicab driver Roy Grant.
Grant said he never leaves the Embarcadero when ships are in.
In 2008, 279 cruise ships dropped off 991,000 passengers on the Embarcadero. But in 2009, only 224 ships came in and unloaded 813,000 people.
"And that has to do with competition. It has to do with our construction. It has to do with market trends," said Jackie Williams of the Port of San Diego.
Those market trends said fewer people were interested in going to Mexico, which is San Diego's primary cruise ship destination.
To boost traffic, the Port of San Diego is building a temporary terminal next to the current B Street terminal. Once completed, B Street will be torn down and a new one built in its place. When both are completed, up to three cruise ships could dock in the area at one time.
The project could be a big boost to businesses and San Diego.
SAN DIEGO -- Tourists hitting the high seas pump $500 million into San Diego's economy every year, but in 2009 San Diego's cruise ship industry took a hit.
Business owners said sales increase 30 percent when a cruise ship unloads thousands of passengers. The Port of San Diego said one cruise ship puts about $2 million into the local economy every time it docks.
Vendors along the Embarcadero said they noticed a dip this year, and some told 10News they depend heavily on the foot traffic generated by the people getting off and on the cruise ships.
The owners of Destinations in Seaport Village told 10News they see a 30 percent jump in sales whenever a ship is in port. "It's always extremely busy, super crowded," said Destinations salesperson Melissa Cena.
Some pedicabs focus all of their business in the cruise ship docking area. One pedicab can take home $150 off one cruise ship.
"I'd say 90 percent of the business that I do is from the cruise ship," said pedicab driver Roy Grant.
Grant said he never leaves the Embarcadero when ships are in.
In 2008, 279 cruise ships dropped off 991,000 passengers on the Embarcadero. But in 2009, only 224 ships came in and unloaded 813,000 people.
"And that has to do with competition. It has to do with our construction. It has to do with market trends," said Jackie Williams of the Port of San Diego.
Those market trends said fewer people were interested in going to Mexico, which is San Diego's primary cruise ship destination.
To boost traffic, the Port of San Diego is building a temporary terminal next to the current B Street terminal. Once completed, B Street will be torn down and a new one built in its place. When both are completed, up to three cruise ships could dock in the area at one time.
The project could be a big boost to businesses and San Diego.
A Bitter Holiday for Pedicabs
By J. DAVID GOODMAN
Nuriddin Shamsiev abandoned his usual spot in Central Park on Monday and pedaled his way down Fifth Avenue to search among the throngs spilling into the streets around Rockefeller Center. Despite the sun, it was shaping up to be another tough day — only one customer in four hours — in what has been a season of tough days for the city’s pedicab industry.
Mr. Shamsiev, a 24-year-old Tajik driver, summed up the situation in two words: “Very bad.”
“Last Christmas was much better,” he added. “But the business went down — you don’t make the same money.”
The economic crisis, a series of wet weekends and new regulations requiring licenses for pedicab drivers have created a perfect storm of misery in New York’s pedicab industry, which depends on the holidays to get through the slow winter months. This year, owners and drivers report, the slow season has come early, with potentially dire consequences for some operators.
“I have no drivers left — at all,” said Ari Nichols, owner of Manhattan Pedicabs. He said he had been undercut on rental rates by other operators in a fierce competition for those few licensed drivers. “There’s three bikes for each driver,” he said. Mr. Nichols is trying to sell some of his pedicabs in order to “hang on one more season,” but said it “would have to be a miracle for me” to make it to the summer.
Many owners blamed the licensing requirement, which went into effect before Thanksgiving and requires pedicab operators to obtain both a driver’s license and a special pedicab license. The regulation has put in a crimp in the number of “shotgun” riders who want to start driving right away — perhaps the intent of the regulation — and has also been a problem for many veteran drivers, said Gregg Zukowski, president of New York City Pedicab Owners Association. Some of these veterans had outstanding fines or other issues with their driver’s licenses that had to be taken care of before they could obtain a pedicab license.
A driver searches for customers on Fifth Avenue near Rockefeller Center.
“The impact of the regulation has been brutal,” said Mr. Zukowski, who is also the owner of Revolution Rickshaws and a driver himself. “We always face a dry season in the winter, but this year, we’ve lost the whole holiday season.” Normally his 18 pedicabs would all be rented during the weeks before Christmas and New Year’s. But this month, only two or three have been rented by drivers on a given day.
License plates have been issued for 889 pedicabs and 474 drivers have applied for licenses, according to the Department of Consumer Affairs. The number of licensed businesses with at least one pedicab is 172 and the department is no longer accepting new applications. There is no cap on the number of pedicab driver’s licenses.
Like others, Mr. Zukowski has lowered the rental rates, but to little effect. “The whole industry has been thrown for a curve,” he said, adding that the only way his business can survive is by refocusing on rickshaw van rentals and deliveries.
There are simply not enough licensed drivers, he said, adding, “The only people who are doing okay are the solo-owner-operators.”
But tell that to Mark Stringer, 44, a seven-year veteran driver whose pedicab is his only source of income. “Normally Christmas builds, gets busier and busier and busier,” he said. But this year it’s been less reliable.
“Me and me buddy, we go out, and one day, I’d be O.K., and he’d have $32. Another day, he’d be fine and I’d have like $27,” Mr. Stringer said. “It was almost like there’s not enough money for everybody out there.”
Nuriddin Shamsiev abandoned his usual spot in Central Park on Monday and pedaled his way down Fifth Avenue to search among the throngs spilling into the streets around Rockefeller Center. Despite the sun, it was shaping up to be another tough day — only one customer in four hours — in what has been a season of tough days for the city’s pedicab industry.
Mr. Shamsiev, a 24-year-old Tajik driver, summed up the situation in two words: “Very bad.”
“Last Christmas was much better,” he added. “But the business went down — you don’t make the same money.”
The economic crisis, a series of wet weekends and new regulations requiring licenses for pedicab drivers have created a perfect storm of misery in New York’s pedicab industry, which depends on the holidays to get through the slow winter months. This year, owners and drivers report, the slow season has come early, with potentially dire consequences for some operators.
“I have no drivers left — at all,” said Ari Nichols, owner of Manhattan Pedicabs. He said he had been undercut on rental rates by other operators in a fierce competition for those few licensed drivers. “There’s three bikes for each driver,” he said. Mr. Nichols is trying to sell some of his pedicabs in order to “hang on one more season,” but said it “would have to be a miracle for me” to make it to the summer.
Many owners blamed the licensing requirement, which went into effect before Thanksgiving and requires pedicab operators to obtain both a driver’s license and a special pedicab license. The regulation has put in a crimp in the number of “shotgun” riders who want to start driving right away — perhaps the intent of the regulation — and has also been a problem for many veteran drivers, said Gregg Zukowski, president of New York City Pedicab Owners Association. Some of these veterans had outstanding fines or other issues with their driver’s licenses that had to be taken care of before they could obtain a pedicab license.
A driver searches for customers on Fifth Avenue near Rockefeller Center.
“The impact of the regulation has been brutal,” said Mr. Zukowski, who is also the owner of Revolution Rickshaws and a driver himself. “We always face a dry season in the winter, but this year, we’ve lost the whole holiday season.” Normally his 18 pedicabs would all be rented during the weeks before Christmas and New Year’s. But this month, only two or three have been rented by drivers on a given day.
License plates have been issued for 889 pedicabs and 474 drivers have applied for licenses, according to the Department of Consumer Affairs. The number of licensed businesses with at least one pedicab is 172 and the department is no longer accepting new applications. There is no cap on the number of pedicab driver’s licenses.
Like others, Mr. Zukowski has lowered the rental rates, but to little effect. “The whole industry has been thrown for a curve,” he said, adding that the only way his business can survive is by refocusing on rickshaw van rentals and deliveries.
There are simply not enough licensed drivers, he said, adding, “The only people who are doing okay are the solo-owner-operators.”
But tell that to Mark Stringer, 44, a seven-year veteran driver whose pedicab is his only source of income. “Normally Christmas builds, gets busier and busier and busier,” he said. But this year it’s been less reliable.
“Me and me buddy, we go out, and one day, I’d be O.K., and he’d have $32. Another day, he’d be fine and I’d have like $27,” Mr. Stringer said. “It was almost like there’s not enough money for everybody out there.”
Rickshaws Pedal Their Way Into Oak Cliff
By SUSY SOLIS
North Oak Cliff has several pockets of retail and restaurant districts and business owners hope pedicabs will connect customers in a safe and cost effective way.
"We want to have a solution for getting people to the different businesses that are going to be popping up down here, so we want to help the economic growth, but we don't want to start plugging concrete parking lots everywhere," said Matt Spiller, owner of Eno's Pizza Tavern.
Spiller wants to start the pedicab operation by spring and has the support of the city of Dallas.
"We needed to move people around the Bishop Arts area," said Delia Jasso, a Dallas City Council member who serves that area of town. "We started talking about what a route might look like to bring people from Jefferson to Bishops Arts and vice versa and then we realized there are a lot of new restaurants on Davis."
Business owners said pedicabs would allow customers to see more of North Oak Cliff and therefore, spend more.
A pedicab service would also help alleviate parking problems. One thing Spiller does not want to do is allow parking problems to bleed into the residential neighborhoods nearby.
"What you could do is park farther away and then ride a pedicab over here because I think once they're in this district, they are going to want to walk from store to store, but to get to here, it would be nice to have a pedicab," said Jan Steiner, who parked several block away from her destination.
Pedicab operators have to get business permits, licenses and insurance before they are allowed to operate, according the City of Dallas Transportation Department.
The pedicab drivers work for tips and will be given a background check before they are hired. The service would be available only on the Bishop Arts District's busiest nights or when special events take place.
A proposed route would cover about a 1.5 square mile area.
"It should be going down Davis, over to Zang and then Zang to Bishop and down to Colorado and up to Jefferson," Spiller said.
Spiller said he will start with a fleet of three to five pedicabs and see what the response is like before expanding.
North Oak Cliff has several pockets of retail and restaurant districts and business owners hope pedicabs will connect customers in a safe and cost effective way.
"We want to have a solution for getting people to the different businesses that are going to be popping up down here, so we want to help the economic growth, but we don't want to start plugging concrete parking lots everywhere," said Matt Spiller, owner of Eno's Pizza Tavern.
Spiller wants to start the pedicab operation by spring and has the support of the city of Dallas.
"We needed to move people around the Bishop Arts area," said Delia Jasso, a Dallas City Council member who serves that area of town. "We started talking about what a route might look like to bring people from Jefferson to Bishops Arts and vice versa and then we realized there are a lot of new restaurants on Davis."
Business owners said pedicabs would allow customers to see more of North Oak Cliff and therefore, spend more.
A pedicab service would also help alleviate parking problems. One thing Spiller does not want to do is allow parking problems to bleed into the residential neighborhoods nearby.
"What you could do is park farther away and then ride a pedicab over here because I think once they're in this district, they are going to want to walk from store to store, but to get to here, it would be nice to have a pedicab," said Jan Steiner, who parked several block away from her destination.
Pedicab operators have to get business permits, licenses and insurance before they are allowed to operate, according the City of Dallas Transportation Department.
The pedicab drivers work for tips and will be given a background check before they are hired. The service would be available only on the Bishop Arts District's busiest nights or when special events take place.
A proposed route would cover about a 1.5 square mile area.
"It should be going down Davis, over to Zang and then Zang to Bishop and down to Colorado and up to Jefferson," Spiller said.
Spiller said he will start with a fleet of three to five pedicabs and see what the response is like before expanding.
Police Begin Pedicab License Enforcement
Police this weekend began pulling over pedicab drivers to see if they and their vehicles are licensed.
Police on Saturday set up a checkpoint in Times Square to see which pedicab drivers are in compliance with new regulations.
Friday was the deadline for operators to apply for medallions.
The medallions signify the pedicabs have been inspected, are safe, and have posted rate cards.
Police say 943 pedicabs were registered before Friday's deadline.
So far, more than 300 drivers have applied for licenses.
Police on Saturday set up a checkpoint in Times Square to see which pedicab drivers are in compliance with new regulations.
Friday was the deadline for operators to apply for medallions.
The medallions signify the pedicabs have been inspected, are safe, and have posted rate cards.
Police say 943 pedicabs were registered before Friday's deadline.
So far, more than 300 drivers have applied for licenses.
New York City Cracks Down on Pedicabs
As authorities begin strongly enforcing rules for pedicabs operating in the city of New York, personal injury lawyers like David Perecman are supportive of the effort.
New York (PRWEB) December 8, 2009 -- The streets of Manhattan are now safer according to New York City personal injury lawyer David Perecman, making reference to the city's crackdown on unlicensed pedicabs.
"The fact that there were so many operators driving with no accountability on safety issues and without insurance made the city more unsafe. Few would know that better than a New York personal injury lawyer," said Perecman, who has had a law firm in Manhattan for over 30 years.
Before the crackdown, up to 1,000 pedicabs were on the streets at one time. To regulate the industry, the city added rules that require pedicab drivers to have headlights, seat belts and working brakes. Prices must also be displayed.
There have been no known fatal pedicab accidents in Manhattan, but passengers and drivers have been injured in collisions with cars, taxis, and buses.
"Thankfully the city is not waiting for a fatal accident to occur before they really enforce the rules. I believe I speak for many New York personal injury lawyers when I say that," said Perecman.
About David Perecman and The Perecman Firm, PLLC:
For the past 30 years, the New York personal injury lawyers, auto accident, construction accident, and medical malpractice lawyers at The Perecman Firm, PLLC have championed all types of cases for personal injury accidents. David Perecman, founder of the Firm, is a Board Director and the past Secretary and Treasurer of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association (NYSTLA) and a chair of its Labor Law Committee. Mr. Perecman's achievements have brought him recognition as an Honoree in the National Law Journal's Hall of Fame, in New York Magazine's "The Best Lawyers in America" and The New York Times Magazine "New York Super Lawyers, Metro Edition" for the years 2007-2010.
The Firm has recovered millions of dollars for its clients. Among the more recent victories, Mr. Perecman won a $15 million verdict* for a construction accident, a $5.35 million dollar verdict** for an automobile accident, and a $40 million dollar structured settlement for medical malpractice.
*later settled while on appeal for $7.940 million ** later settled for $3.5 million "Lawyer Advertising" "Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome."
###
New York (PRWEB) December 8, 2009 -- The streets of Manhattan are now safer according to New York City personal injury lawyer David Perecman, making reference to the city's crackdown on unlicensed pedicabs.
"The fact that there were so many operators driving with no accountability on safety issues and without insurance made the city more unsafe. Few would know that better than a New York personal injury lawyer," said Perecman, who has had a law firm in Manhattan for over 30 years.
Before the crackdown, up to 1,000 pedicabs were on the streets at one time. To regulate the industry, the city added rules that require pedicab drivers to have headlights, seat belts and working brakes. Prices must also be displayed.
There have been no known fatal pedicab accidents in Manhattan, but passengers and drivers have been injured in collisions with cars, taxis, and buses.
"Thankfully the city is not waiting for a fatal accident to occur before they really enforce the rules. I believe I speak for many New York personal injury lawyers when I say that," said Perecman.
About David Perecman and The Perecman Firm, PLLC:
For the past 30 years, the New York personal injury lawyers, auto accident, construction accident, and medical malpractice lawyers at The Perecman Firm, PLLC have championed all types of cases for personal injury accidents. David Perecman, founder of the Firm, is a Board Director and the past Secretary and Treasurer of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association (NYSTLA) and a chair of its Labor Law Committee. Mr. Perecman's achievements have brought him recognition as an Honoree in the National Law Journal's Hall of Fame, in New York Magazine's "The Best Lawyers in America" and The New York Times Magazine "New York Super Lawyers, Metro Edition" for the years 2007-2010.
The Firm has recovered millions of dollars for its clients. Among the more recent victories, Mr. Perecman won a $15 million verdict* for a construction accident, a $5.35 million dollar verdict** for an automobile accident, and a $40 million dollar structured settlement for medical malpractice.
*later settled while on appeal for $7.940 million ** later settled for $3.5 million "Lawyer Advertising" "Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome."
###
Austin gets ready for cold weather
by By JIM BERGAMO/KVUE News
Posted on December 4, 2009 at 9:45 PM
Updated Friday, Dec 4 at 10:26 PM
******
Despite those very chilly temperatures, some people in Central Texas are spending tonight outside.
The people we talked to from Austin to Cedar Park weren't about to let the threat of freezing temperatures keep them from having fun or going to work, and none of tonight's outdoor events that we covered had to cancel because of the weather.
Since Friday's real snow didn't stick around long enough, the evergreens at the Mueller development were covered in the phony white stuff. This snow may have been fake, but the threat of a hard freeze is very real. And that is just fine with the Hagler family.
"We have plenty of hot weather in Texas so I look forward to all the cold weather we can get," said Glenn Hagler from Austin.
Melissa Steiner is used to the cold.
"It is something I have always dealt with in Michigan but it keeps you moving, keeps you going," Steiner said.
Folks in Cedar Park didn't have to light a fireplace at home, because there was already a pretty good fire working in the old pit. The fire warmed their bodies and the annual tree lighting warmed their hearts.
"We have been residents of Cedar Park for 13 years and I told the family hey lets go out and do something different on a Friday evening and so here we are," Janice Auld said.
For others, a Friday night near freezing was no different than any other Friday night - its simply time to go to work. Scott Cannon is a pedicab driver for Capital Pedicab.
"This is the first ah, first cold weekend of the year and it seems like it is really taking the customers by surprise, it is really dead out here so far," Cannon said.
Leave it to some KISS fans from Florida to come prepared for the cold weather and a hot time -- each sporting a ski mask in the likeness of their favorite KISS band member.
"We flew in from Orlando last night, it was 80 degrees when we left and we heard there was going to be snow here tonight but we're here for the show, it's going to be a hot show," said Brad McMahen.
So just how cold is it? Well it is cold enough to keep a duck on dry land. Only four people showed up for the Duck Tour today -- we're told they need at least 10 passengers before the land and water tour can take off.
Posted on December 4, 2009 at 9:45 PM
Updated Friday, Dec 4 at 10:26 PM
******
Despite those very chilly temperatures, some people in Central Texas are spending tonight outside.
The people we talked to from Austin to Cedar Park weren't about to let the threat of freezing temperatures keep them from having fun or going to work, and none of tonight's outdoor events that we covered had to cancel because of the weather.
Since Friday's real snow didn't stick around long enough, the evergreens at the Mueller development were covered in the phony white stuff. This snow may have been fake, but the threat of a hard freeze is very real. And that is just fine with the Hagler family.
"We have plenty of hot weather in Texas so I look forward to all the cold weather we can get," said Glenn Hagler from Austin.
Melissa Steiner is used to the cold.
"It is something I have always dealt with in Michigan but it keeps you moving, keeps you going," Steiner said.
Folks in Cedar Park didn't have to light a fireplace at home, because there was already a pretty good fire working in the old pit. The fire warmed their bodies and the annual tree lighting warmed their hearts.
"We have been residents of Cedar Park for 13 years and I told the family hey lets go out and do something different on a Friday evening and so here we are," Janice Auld said.
For others, a Friday night near freezing was no different than any other Friday night - its simply time to go to work. Scott Cannon is a pedicab driver for Capital Pedicab.
"This is the first ah, first cold weekend of the year and it seems like it is really taking the customers by surprise, it is really dead out here so far," Cannon said.
Leave it to some KISS fans from Florida to come prepared for the cold weather and a hot time -- each sporting a ski mask in the likeness of their favorite KISS band member.
"We flew in from Orlando last night, it was 80 degrees when we left and we heard there was going to be snow here tonight but we're here for the show, it's going to be a hot show," said Brad McMahen.
So just how cold is it? Well it is cold enough to keep a duck on dry land. Only four people showed up for the Duck Tour today -- we're told they need at least 10 passengers before the land and water tour can take off.
Pedicabs Will Now Be Inspected and Licensed
By MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM
Published: November 20, 2009
New York City’s pedicab business, by most accounts, began on an East Village side street circa 1995, as a close-knit collective of tricyclists squeezed into a garage next door to the Hells Angels. Tap dancers, undertakers and striptease artists were among the first drivers.
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Memet Emin Ozgan repairing pedicabs at Zenk Pedicab on West 57th Street.
From these bohemian beginnings came an unlikely pairing: green transportation and unbridled capitalism, a pollution-free way around town that, in good times, earned its proprietors upward of $1,000 a week.
But as the business grew, so did its troubles. Hundreds of new bike operators arrived, pestering tourists and testing the city’s tolerance. Pedicab owners, alarmed at lax safety standards, began a push for regulation — an effort that stretched for years, encompassing a rare mayoral veto in 2007 and a protracted court battle that ended only last spring.
Now, the upstart enterprise has officially become a profession. Citywide regulation went into effect this weekend. Under the new rules, pedicabs must be insured and inspected for safety. Headlights, seat belts and hydraulic brakes are required. Drivers must be licensed, and prices clearly displayed. Infractions will result in warnings, suspensions and, for repeat offenses, an outright ban.
“We’re going from something that was born in a dusty downtown garage, completely out of grass-roots activism, into a commercial, regulated activity,” said Peter Meitzler, who ran one of the early fleets. “12:01 Saturday, we’re in a new era.”
Regulation is a milestone for a business that has long yearned for respect, yet some owners and drivers worry that the rules could go too far. Rumors abound that the city will ban pedicabs from Midtown, hurting sales. And drivers fear overzealous police enforcement.
But many longtime pedicab workers recognize that the business has changed, and that they must change with it.
“We grow, we get older, we’re changing. Life is different,” said Igor Krugov, 24, a student who started driving a pedicab in 2005 and now rents out four. Initially attracted to the glamorous side — meeting celebrities, flying down to work the Super Bowl, giving free rides to pretty girls — Mr. Krugov now says the rules will make the business more legitimate.
“Now we are officially a part of the city,” he said the other day, pointing to an official rate card freshly affixed to a bike. (Not all of that do-it-yourself quality has been lost: the prices were printed on computer paper.) The new rules, however, could put a damper on the easygoing mentality that let out-of-work artists and amateur bike nerds get paid to do what they loved. In the off-season, some drivers spent their earnings on vacations to London, Brazil and Mexico that lasted for months.
In 2000, Ricardo Hernandez, a musician, needed $800 to pay his rent in Bushwick, Brooklyn. He answered an ad in the Village Voice seeking pedicab drivers; in his first week, he made $900. “We were like troubadours,” Mr. Hernandez recalled recently at a pedicab garage on 57th Street. “We all knew each other. You’d go back to the garage and gather and talk about your day.”
“Now there’s a lot of normal people, just average people,” he said. “Now it’s an average job. It’s lost its charm.” Mr. Hernandez registered for his license this week; he said he hoped that the new rules would make customers and police officers consider pedicabs a safer form of transit. “They’re going to have to respect us,” he said. “We’re not anonymous anymore.”
In June, a pedicab driver and two passengers were injured in a collision with a taxi at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge in Brooklyn, prompting a renewed effort by the city to regulate. Fleet owners like Cevdet Kiziltan, who owns 30 cabs, said accountability would keep reckless players out of the profession. He said he missed the days when customers were friendlier and the business looked out for its own.
As of Friday morning, the city had received applications from 303 drivers and 150 businesses, for a total of 844 individual pedicabs.
Officials said they were disappointed that many waited until the last minute. “This industry is taking a journey toward professionalizing itself,” said Jonathan Mintz, the commissioner of consumer affairs. “It’s going to be a long journey.”
George Bliss, 56, started the original garage on East Third Street; at first, he thought pedicabs would be a popular way for clubgoers to migrate crosstown on weekend nights. Nowadays, he is more ambivalent.
“Even some of my most cherished drivers didn’t care whether they had liability insurance or not,” he said disgustedly. “The attitude was, ‘Go ahead and sue me, I don’t have any assets.’ ” But he admitted to some nostalgia.
“Those are the glory days of my life,” he said. “People would just tell me: ‘I love this job. You have given me the best job of my life.’ ”
Plus, there are the health benefits.
“Pulling two Texan tourists, that’s 400 pounds you have in the back, plus the cab is 150 pounds,” Mr. Bliss said. “I had many people take that job to lose weight.”
Published: November 20, 2009
New York City’s pedicab business, by most accounts, began on an East Village side street circa 1995, as a close-knit collective of tricyclists squeezed into a garage next door to the Hells Angels. Tap dancers, undertakers and striptease artists were among the first drivers.
Skip to next paragraph
Readers’ Opinions
Comment Post a Comment on City Room
Enlarge This Image
Julie Glassberg/The New York Times
Memet Emin Ozgan repairing pedicabs at Zenk Pedicab on West 57th Street.
From these bohemian beginnings came an unlikely pairing: green transportation and unbridled capitalism, a pollution-free way around town that, in good times, earned its proprietors upward of $1,000 a week.
But as the business grew, so did its troubles. Hundreds of new bike operators arrived, pestering tourists and testing the city’s tolerance. Pedicab owners, alarmed at lax safety standards, began a push for regulation — an effort that stretched for years, encompassing a rare mayoral veto in 2007 and a protracted court battle that ended only last spring.
Now, the upstart enterprise has officially become a profession. Citywide regulation went into effect this weekend. Under the new rules, pedicabs must be insured and inspected for safety. Headlights, seat belts and hydraulic brakes are required. Drivers must be licensed, and prices clearly displayed. Infractions will result in warnings, suspensions and, for repeat offenses, an outright ban.
“We’re going from something that was born in a dusty downtown garage, completely out of grass-roots activism, into a commercial, regulated activity,” said Peter Meitzler, who ran one of the early fleets. “12:01 Saturday, we’re in a new era.”
Regulation is a milestone for a business that has long yearned for respect, yet some owners and drivers worry that the rules could go too far. Rumors abound that the city will ban pedicabs from Midtown, hurting sales. And drivers fear overzealous police enforcement.
But many longtime pedicab workers recognize that the business has changed, and that they must change with it.
“We grow, we get older, we’re changing. Life is different,” said Igor Krugov, 24, a student who started driving a pedicab in 2005 and now rents out four. Initially attracted to the glamorous side — meeting celebrities, flying down to work the Super Bowl, giving free rides to pretty girls — Mr. Krugov now says the rules will make the business more legitimate.
“Now we are officially a part of the city,” he said the other day, pointing to an official rate card freshly affixed to a bike. (Not all of that do-it-yourself quality has been lost: the prices were printed on computer paper.) The new rules, however, could put a damper on the easygoing mentality that let out-of-work artists and amateur bike nerds get paid to do what they loved. In the off-season, some drivers spent their earnings on vacations to London, Brazil and Mexico that lasted for months.
In 2000, Ricardo Hernandez, a musician, needed $800 to pay his rent in Bushwick, Brooklyn. He answered an ad in the Village Voice seeking pedicab drivers; in his first week, he made $900. “We were like troubadours,” Mr. Hernandez recalled recently at a pedicab garage on 57th Street. “We all knew each other. You’d go back to the garage and gather and talk about your day.”
“Now there’s a lot of normal people, just average people,” he said. “Now it’s an average job. It’s lost its charm.” Mr. Hernandez registered for his license this week; he said he hoped that the new rules would make customers and police officers consider pedicabs a safer form of transit. “They’re going to have to respect us,” he said. “We’re not anonymous anymore.”
In June, a pedicab driver and two passengers were injured in a collision with a taxi at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge in Brooklyn, prompting a renewed effort by the city to regulate. Fleet owners like Cevdet Kiziltan, who owns 30 cabs, said accountability would keep reckless players out of the profession. He said he missed the days when customers were friendlier and the business looked out for its own.
As of Friday morning, the city had received applications from 303 drivers and 150 businesses, for a total of 844 individual pedicabs.
Officials said they were disappointed that many waited until the last minute. “This industry is taking a journey toward professionalizing itself,” said Jonathan Mintz, the commissioner of consumer affairs. “It’s going to be a long journey.”
George Bliss, 56, started the original garage on East Third Street; at first, he thought pedicabs would be a popular way for clubgoers to migrate crosstown on weekend nights. Nowadays, he is more ambivalent.
“Even some of my most cherished drivers didn’t care whether they had liability insurance or not,” he said disgustedly. “The attitude was, ‘Go ahead and sue me, I don’t have any assets.’ ” But he admitted to some nostalgia.
“Those are the glory days of my life,” he said. “People would just tell me: ‘I love this job. You have given me the best job of my life.’ ”
Plus, there are the health benefits.
“Pulling two Texan tourists, that’s 400 pounds you have in the back, plus the cab is 150 pounds,” Mr. Bliss said. “I had many people take that job to lose weight.”
New York Pedicabs Go Legit, Lose Outlaw Status
by Victor Ozols
I've never taken a pedicab in my life, but it seems I'm in the minority, as the number of the pedal-powered bicycle taxis has risen dramatically since their introduction to New York in 1995. Pedicabs have become so popular, in fact, that they're now regulated by the city, which requires vehicles to be insured, inspected, and fitted with seat belts, headlights, and hydraulic brakes. A story in The New York Times explains that the new regulations legitimize an industry that began as something of a fringe group, attracting actors, artists, and various downtown weirdos to a unique profession that could net them up to $1,000 a week and help them stay skinny and hot.
Back in 1995, I was living on East Third Street above a bar called The Edge when the first pedicabs began rolling out of a garage just down the block, next to the Hells Angels clubhouse. I honestly thought they'd never be more than a novelty in the city. After all, pedicabs go slower than taxis and cost more. But people must like the open-air ride, with good views and occasional moments of terror, because nowadays I see them everywhere, especially in midtown where I work. Their increasing popularity in the city is especially odd because cyclos and rickshaws are a dying breed in places like Vietnam, India, and China, rapidly being replaced by cars and smoke-belching scooters.
So I guess pedicabs are a good addition to New York's streets, because they emit no exhaust and are a nearly silent form of transport in a city with more than enough noise. I'm still unlikely to flag one down, though, because I automatically head for the subway whenever I need to travel fast. Have you ever taken a pedicab in New York or anywhere else? Share your experience in the comments.
I've never taken a pedicab in my life, but it seems I'm in the minority, as the number of the pedal-powered bicycle taxis has risen dramatically since their introduction to New York in 1995. Pedicabs have become so popular, in fact, that they're now regulated by the city, which requires vehicles to be insured, inspected, and fitted with seat belts, headlights, and hydraulic brakes. A story in The New York Times explains that the new regulations legitimize an industry that began as something of a fringe group, attracting actors, artists, and various downtown weirdos to a unique profession that could net them up to $1,000 a week and help them stay skinny and hot.
Back in 1995, I was living on East Third Street above a bar called The Edge when the first pedicabs began rolling out of a garage just down the block, next to the Hells Angels clubhouse. I honestly thought they'd never be more than a novelty in the city. After all, pedicabs go slower than taxis and cost more. But people must like the open-air ride, with good views and occasional moments of terror, because nowadays I see them everywhere, especially in midtown where I work. Their increasing popularity in the city is especially odd because cyclos and rickshaws are a dying breed in places like Vietnam, India, and China, rapidly being replaced by cars and smoke-belching scooters.
So I guess pedicabs are a good addition to New York's streets, because they emit no exhaust and are a nearly silent form of transport in a city with more than enough noise. I'm still unlikely to flag one down, though, because I automatically head for the subway whenever I need to travel fast. Have you ever taken a pedicab in New York or anywhere else? Share your experience in the comments.
Pedicab Owners Rush to Beat Deadline for City Licenses
Pedicab Owners Rush to Beat Deadline for City Licenses
By Jennifer Glickel
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
BATTERY PARK CITY — Pedicab owners filled the licensing office of the Department of Consumer Affairs Friday in order to beat the 5 p.m. deadline to apply for business licenses to stay on the road legally.
After a series of complaints, accidents, and injuries, Friday marked the culmination of the city's push to regulate the pedicab industry.
"Everybody used to like us. It used to be so much fun!," said Bernard Treanor, a self-declared pedicab veteran. "Now, it's just like all we do is run people over. But hopefully that's going to change now with the regulations."
In order to become licensed, pedicab owners had to submit a business application, provide proof of insurance, and pass every vehicle through an extensive safety inspection. Pedicab drivers also need to secure a special drivers license issued by the DCA.
Pedicab Owners Apply for City Licenses with a Few Hours to SparePedicab owners waited patiently at the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs Friday to submit their business applications for pedicab licenses. (Jennifer Glickel/DNAinfo)
Pedicab owners applying for licenses on Friday agreed that the regulation will have a positive impact, particularly in terms of safety.
"I think it's really important that the DCA is regulating safety because some people used to drive without seat belts and they took more than three passengers," said Andrey Zhilnikov, 24, who applied for a license on Friday.
"It's dangerous, especially on the street."
Applications will not be accepted for 18 months following today's deadline, which has prompted an influx of applications in the last week and a half, according to the DCA.
"We have really been out there hitting the streets trying to get the word out to all the thousand plus pedicabs that everybody sees out on the roads to let them know if you want to stay in business, you need to come into DCA and submit your application," DCA Commissioner Jonathan Mintz told DNAinfo.
"Obviously people have gotten that message because as of the end of [Thursday], we had over 844 pedicabs that had been applied for," Mintz said.
"These licenses are all geared toward one thing, which is to make sure that pedicabs are safe and accountable to the public."
By Jennifer Glickel
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
BATTERY PARK CITY — Pedicab owners filled the licensing office of the Department of Consumer Affairs Friday in order to beat the 5 p.m. deadline to apply for business licenses to stay on the road legally.
After a series of complaints, accidents, and injuries, Friday marked the culmination of the city's push to regulate the pedicab industry.
"Everybody used to like us. It used to be so much fun!," said Bernard Treanor, a self-declared pedicab veteran. "Now, it's just like all we do is run people over. But hopefully that's going to change now with the regulations."
In order to become licensed, pedicab owners had to submit a business application, provide proof of insurance, and pass every vehicle through an extensive safety inspection. Pedicab drivers also need to secure a special drivers license issued by the DCA.
Pedicab Owners Apply for City Licenses with a Few Hours to SparePedicab owners waited patiently at the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs Friday to submit their business applications for pedicab licenses. (Jennifer Glickel/DNAinfo)
Pedicab owners applying for licenses on Friday agreed that the regulation will have a positive impact, particularly in terms of safety.
"I think it's really important that the DCA is regulating safety because some people used to drive without seat belts and they took more than three passengers," said Andrey Zhilnikov, 24, who applied for a license on Friday.
"It's dangerous, especially on the street."
Applications will not be accepted for 18 months following today's deadline, which has prompted an influx of applications in the last week and a half, according to the DCA.
"We have really been out there hitting the streets trying to get the word out to all the thousand plus pedicabs that everybody sees out on the roads to let them know if you want to stay in business, you need to come into DCA and submit your application," DCA Commissioner Jonathan Mintz told DNAinfo.
"Obviously people have gotten that message because as of the end of [Thursday], we had over 844 pedicabs that had been applied for," Mintz said.
"These licenses are all geared toward one thing, which is to make sure that pedicabs are safe and accountable to the public."
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