Greenway Pedicabs: Tricycle Taxis for the Triangle

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A few weeks ago, this Treehugger had his first experience of pedicabs. For the uninitiated, this is the hip, modern name for what is, essentially, a rickshaw, or tricycle taxi. They seem to be mushrooming everywhere. London is now full of them, thanks to the congestion charge, and they are also popular in New York, as we noted here. Our ride was courtesy of Greenway Pedicabs in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, in the Triangle region of North Carolina. The service operates, weather permitting, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings in the downtown area, and can be flagged down, or booked by phone, and rates start at $4, and then go up according to how many riders there are, and how long the journey is. Riders are also available for events and celebrations.

Overall, our experience was a pleasant one. The rider turned up promptly, and the journey was comfortable. To be honest, if you’re in a hurry, the pedicab probably isn’t for you, as the weight of two passengers certainly slowed our ‘driver’ down somewhat, but it was a pleasant evening, and we enjoyed taking the weight off our feet. We’d be interested to know whether these services really replace any motorized taxi journeys, or whether they are principally for journeys that would otherwise have been taken by foot. Either way, it’s certainly a low-impact way for someone to earn money, and it does serve as a highly visible example of clean transport. ::Greenway Pedicabs::