For those new to CabbieBlog or readers who are slightly forgetful, on Saturdays I’m republishing posts, many going back over a decade. Some will still be very relevant while others have become dated over time. Just think of this post as your weekend paper supplement.

Pedalbus proliferation (19.07.11)

They started out as a “bit of fun” around the West End over 10 years ago and have proliferated into a fleet of over 800 unregulated passenger-carrying vehicles, which clog up the streets and have been proven to be unsafe at speeds over 9 mph. Only last weekend one was reported to have been involved in an accident which resulted in one policeman needing hospital treatment. I’m referring, of course, to Rickshaws. As recently as last week John McDonnell MP successfully objected to the TfL London Local Authority Bill at its Second Reading on the grounds that it would lead to the continued proliferation of these unlicensed, unsafe rickshaws clogging up central London’s streets.

Now a new novel way of travelling around the capital has hit the streets – The Pedalbus.

Made from aluminium it resembles a flatbed freight car, with four wheels and eight seats on the deck each with its own set of pedals.

I have to admit that every time I see one of the four currently in use it brings a smile to my face. For the genius of its inventor Luke Roberson was to arrange the seats in two rows facing each other over a bar; and while pedalling away furiously, passengers – if that is what they are – are enjoying a glass or two of chilled Chablis. With a driver in the front, minus the glass of wine, who is in charge of the steering and brakes. It makes for a very humorous diversion when plying a cab around London’s streets.

Hiring a Pedalbus has become a trend among corporate clients as a way of team building, and that is the problem. Rather miraculously, as with the rickshaws, the Pedalbus is totally legal to travel around London’s main roads, and while they remain a novel bit of fun if Luke Roberson continues to be successful, or in the worst case scenario, rogue operators who are uninsured enter the marketplace; these vehicles over time will present the same menace as rickshaws do today.

The Pedalbus is the type of inventive, entrepreneurial and frankly slightly unhinged invention that the English excel in; if the numbers on the road are kept down by Pedalbus they should not present a problem for London. Luke Roberson should take out as many available patients on his invention as he can to prevent less scrupulous operators from stealing his great idea and for good measure remove the grey areas that it operates; is it a bike, a commercial vehicle (therefore unable to enter the Royal Parks) or a vehicle that has to be taxed? If those issues can be resolved and enter the Statute Book under TfL London Local Authority Bill, to be considered when Parliament finishes its summer recess, Pedalbus could be a welcome addition to London for years to come.