pedicab/cargo-bike to make a living in North America?

On Mon, 06 Jun 2005 17:20:02 -0600, Chuck Anderson
wrote:

Werehatrack wrote:

On 4 Jun 2005 02:36:50 -0700, wrote:

anyone in North America earns their living with a pedicab or
cargo-bike?

The closest thing that's common is the bicycle courier, a job which
exists in most larger cities. Such couriers are used for fast
delivery of documents and small items between offices in the central
business districts of such areas. Cargo bikes used for transport for
hire are essentially unknown in the US. Pedicabs exist in a few
tourist-heavy locales, but once again, they are generally rare.

Funny. From the responses here it sounds like they are all over the
place (albeit, only where there might be tourists).

Theoretically, we had some pedicabs here for a while, and might still
though I haven't seen them. Horse-drawn carriages, yes; those ply the
streets of downtown most nights of the week. But given Houston's
reputation as the fattest major city in the nation, I could understand
if there was a certain amount of reluctance to try running pedicabs
here, even with our relatively flat terrain.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
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On Tue, 07 Jun 2005 12:41:23 -0500, numbnutz numbnutz wrote:

If you want to make the big bux, buy a fleet of Segway's and rent them
out. You can charge $40 per hour and every one you have will be out
for as many hours per day as you care to hang around waitng for them
to come back.

Interestingly, there's one "fleet" of Segways here that is reportedly
on its third owner, having failed to capture the imagination or
interest of potential renters in several parts of town. Perhaps there
is a locale in Texas where the Segway can be a profitable vehicle to
provide, but Houston does not appear to be it.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
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Per Matt O'Toole:
Instead of buying a Segway, he should have bought a lawnmower. Not only is it
1/20 the cost, but he could get paid $20/hr for doing essentially the same
thing!

Yeah, but it's just *gotta* be a kick to get on that thing after an hour or two
of pushing it and have it carry you home....wind in your hair and all that...
--
PeteCresswell

On Tue, 07 Jun 2005 19:20:57 -0700, "(PeteCresswell)"
wrote:

Per Matt O'Toole:
Instead of buying a Segway, he should have bought a lawnmower. Not only is it
1/20 the cost, but he could get paid $20/hr for doing essentially the same
thing!

Yeah, but it's just *gotta* be a kick to get on that thing after an hour or two
of pushing it and have it carry you home....wind in your hair and all that...

The laws of thermodynamics would intrude; I would expect that pushing
it 5 miles at a brisk pace might accumulate enough charge to have it
carry you half a mile slowly, if that half a mile is all downhill.
(Regen braking is only a good theory uintil you understand its
practical limitations.)
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On Wed, 08 Jun 2005 14:14:06 -0700, "(PeteCresswell)"
wrote:

Per Werehatrack:
The laws of thermodynamics would intrude; I would expect that pushing
it 5 miles at a brisk pace might accumulate enough charge to have it
carry you half a mile slowly,

I was thinking of the charging more as a means to make it harder to push.

Oh, there's no doubt in my mind that's what the guy was banking on,
but the efficiency of the system can't be very high; it certainly
wouldn't be a "push-out-ride-home" situation unless the push was all
uphill and the ride home all down. A rock would do as well for that.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
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Per Werehatrack:
The laws of thermodynamics would intrude; I would expect that pushing
it 5 miles at a brisk pace might accumulate enough charge to have it
carry you half a mile slowly,

I was thinking of the charging more as a means to make it harder to push.
--
PeteCresswell

In article ,
says...



wrote in message
roups.com...
anyone in North America earns their living with a pedicab or
cargo-bike?

I haven't heard of anyone trying this in North America, but I would think it
would be possible in traffic congested areas such as NYC or Boston or other
large metro areas, as long as the passenger was not traveling too far.

They are here in NYC. I don't know if anyone can make a living with one.
--------------
Alex

Houston fattest? Only according to the unscientific Men's Fitness
Magazine -- basically the men's version of Cosmo. But not according to
the CDC.

http://www.obesity.org/subs/fastfacts/cities.shtml

On Thu, 09 Jun 2005 13:06:17 -0400, Alex Rodriguez
wrote:

In article ,
says...



wrote in message
groups.com...
anyone in North America earns their living with a pedicab or
cargo-bike?

I haven't heard of anyone trying this in North America, but I would think it
would be possible in traffic congested areas such as NYC or Boston or other
large metro areas, as long as the passenger was not traveling too far.

They are here in NYC. I don't know if anyone can make a living with one.
--------------
Alex

They are very annoying. They go slowly in the bike lanes and real
bikes have to pass them, which is sometimes a bit touchy on a busy
street.

However they often have passengers so someone is making money. I don't
think anyone uses it for transportation, more like something to do,
like the horse drawn carriages.

In article ,
says...

wrote in message
roups.com...
anyone in North America earns their living with a pedicab or
cargo-bike?

I haven't heard of anyone trying this in North America, but I would think it
would be possible in traffic congested areas such as NYC or Boston or other
large metro areas, as long as the passenger was not traveling too far.

They are already here in NYC. They are not cheap to ride in, you negotiate the
fare in advance, and they are not fast. I've seen the drivers doing some
stupid things, like going the wrong way down a one way street.
--------------
Alex