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Volume 1, Number 48 | The Weekly Newspaper of Chelsea | Aug. 17 - 23, 2007
On the Record
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I like pedicabs. I’ve taken them once, and it was nice. I think the license requirement is a good thing though. It would be nice to know that they had to pass some sort of test or something. And the tunnel thing seems all right. I mean, why would anyone want to drive a pedicab through a tunnel? So, I half agree with this.
–Amy, 47, homemaker, Gramercy
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I like them. Pedicabs are really cool and seem very useful. So, I approve of them and think this [the legislation] is stupid. It is going way too far. I mean, posting rates is good, and the license is also okay. But if the yellow taxis see pedicabs as a threat, that’s dumb. I mean, with the millions of cabs there are in the city, could they really be a threat? And I think the pedicabs are good because currently we are going through all this global warming stuff, and this is a ‘green’ way to go.
–Ilana Grunberg Weiss, 14, student at NYC Lab School, Park Slope
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I think they are very dangerous. They cut in and out of traffic. And they are even worse when it is raining. I agree with requiring them to get licenses and cutting down the number of them, and the motor thing [prohibiting pedicabs from having electric-assist motors]. I am a driver, I drive in the city a lot, and I think they are very dangerous.
–Frank, 62, chauffer, Elmont [Long Island] |
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Weighing in on the City Council’s pedicab leglislation
By Sarah Marlow and Claudia Berger
On any given day, Times Square and certain areas Downtown are bustling with tourists, cabs, buses and pedicabs. However, it may not be like this for long. In April, the City Council, led by Speaker Quinn, voted 37–6 to override the Mayor’s veto of its controversial pedicab regulations (Intro 331-A). The bill imposes myriad restrictions on one of the city’s fastest growing industries, and has caused both concern and outrage among the city’s pedicab drivers and environmental activists, who are disappointed that their livelihood and a favored form of “green” transportation is threatened.
The bill requires pedicab drivers to have licenses and registration for their cabs, like their four-wheeled counterparts. Pedicabs also must post their rates like their yellow cousins. However, only a limited number of licenses will be issued. According to 331-A, no more than 325 pedicab licenses can be issued concurrently, which will cause a substantial drop from the estimated 500 pedicabs operating in the city today. The bill also imposes bans that seem impractical: Pedicabs can no longer drive in bike lanes, on bridges, through tunnels or anywhere in a city park. Additionally, pedicabs can no longer use any type of motor, including the common electric-assist motor, which does not pollute, often has less than one horsepower and is frequently employed by drivers to help with heavier loads or on inclines. The bill also gives law enforcement the authority to ban pedicabs from using certain streets if they see it fit—for up to 14 days at a time. They may also be banned entirely from Midtown during the holiday season.
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I’ve never taken them, but I don’t mind them. And some of the regulations seem legit: no driving in the bike lane or in tunnels. Just think of them in the Holland Tunnel! But cutting them from certain streets doesn’t seem right. Why should they cut them off from Midtown during the holiday season? That’s where all the tourists are, and they enjoy that sort of thing. That is part of the reason they come to the city, for things like pedicabs.
–Nikki Castillo, 25, commercial producer, Chelsea
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I don’t have an opinion of them, except that they’re good for the environment. But let’s face it, New York City likes to make regulations on everything—it’s ridiculous. So, I think Mayor Bloomberg was correct [in issuing his veto so the City Council legislation could be reviewed. This way they could have studied the issue a bit before hurting the pedicab industry unnecessarily.
–Karl Kotas, age not revealed, artist/producer/writer, Chelsea
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They are cute, economical and a good way to get around. They are very efficient and they don’t make noise, so I like them. But car services and yellow cabs have a major voice in New York City. Why else would there be no way to get to airports on public transportation until recently? So, maybe they did [have a part in the legislation]. But the pedicabs don’t take too much of the yellow cabs’ business. You only go short distances in them, and there are far more taxis than pedicabs.
–Stephen Hirsh, 44, talent representative, Chelsea |
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One particular point of contention surrounding the bill is the Council’s motivation. Some speculate that Speaker Quinn’s personal bias influenced the decision. She appeared to be frustrated with traffic congestion caused by pedicabs after seeing a Broadway performance at one point not long ago: “You couldn’t pass on the street because there were pedicabs from one curb to the other, completely blocking the flow of traffic,” she is reported to have said. Others insist that a taxi-lobbyist friend influenced her. However “ridiculous” Quinn deemed this allegation to be, it does raise some important questions. How much of a role did the yellow cab industry have in this legislation? Are pedicabs an integral or disposable part of New York City’s economy and culture? With the law’s impending jurisdiction (the regulations take effect Sept. 20), Chelsea Now hit the streets to see how New Yorkers feel about the regulations.
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