(Photo: Cascadia Cabs)
Seattle news outlets are reporting that a pedicab carrying two passengers ran through a red light at a downtown intersection and collided with a scooter and then a minivan, killing one of the people in the cab and causing serious injuries to the other passenger and the pedicab driver (as well as minor injuries to two others).
Cascadia Cabs, the company involved in the tragic crash, currently operates 35 cabs in Portland.
News reports speculate that an equipment failure on the pedicab might be to blame for the crash (and that it was unable to stop for the red light as a result). However, the collision occurred on a steep downhill street (Cedar Street) and the operator was likely traveling at a high rate of speed and could have been unable to stop in time.
Ryan Hashagen is the owner of Cascadia Cabs and I spoke to him Wednesday night. Hashagen — who was noticeably shaken by the day’s events — said his company has a fleet of 35 cabs in Portland and employs 75 drivers locally.
He said that each one of them are independent contractors and that they receive “extensive training” before hitting the road.
“We have a motto: ‘Be Safe, Have Fun, Make Money’.”
Hashagen adds that every cab in his fleet is “given maintenance inspections before every shift,” and that, “cabs do not go out on the street if they are in unsafe working order.” He also explained that Cascadia has five full time mechanics in Portland that maintain the cabs on a daily basis.
Pedicabs on N. Mississippi.
(Photo © J. Maus)
According to Hashagen, the cab involved in Wednesday night’s crash had been inspected just hours prior and it was “deemed safe by the mechanic on duty.” Hashagen says that the same mechanic went to the scene of the crash and found that the brakes were fully intact.
“We try to explain to drivers that operating a cab with passengers on roads with motor vehicles is a huge responsibility… we emphasize that on a mental level and on a physical level.”
Downtown Portland has seen a surge in pedicab traffic in the past year. Prior to June of 2007, there was only one pedicab operating downtown, but today, there are over 40 active pedicabs and three companies offer pedicab services.
Hashagen’s Cascadia Cabs (which also operates fleets in four other Northwest cities) is the largest in Portland since they began doing business here in March of this year. Rose Pedal Pedicabs (formerly aligned with Cascadia), is owned by Casey Martell and has been operating in Portland for six years. In June of last year, Jonathan Magnus launched PDX Pedicabs and currently operates 8 cabs.
Martell says he can’t recall any serious pedicab collisions in Portland. “I’ve had drunk people fall out of the back, but that’s about it.”
Jonathan Magnus, whose PDX Pedicabs employs about 10-12 active cab operators, says his company also takes safety very seriously. “When our riders leave the shop, they must first go through a detailed checklist to make sure everything’s operating properly… and they go through the same checklist when they return from their shift.”
Pedicab operators are not required to have a special license, but Magnus says he’d like to see that happen eventually.
Do you operate a pedicab? If so, what are your thoughts about the Seattle incident and what have been your experiences riding in traffic?
Thanks for reading.
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Let\’s just get this out of the way first –
Should have been wearing helmets, of course!
But helmets wouldn\’t have helped!
But cyclists should always wear helmets.
No they shouldn\’t.
Yes they should!
Now that that\’s out of the way, on with the discussion.
I wonder what kind of insurance these \’independent contractors\’ are required to carry?
Strange that as much as I am down town I don\’t have a problem with these cabs. They stay out of sight during rush hour. Most have lights, Most follow the laws and even if they are slow it\’s only for a short while.
My heart really goes out to the families and friends of passenger who died.
To think that one moment you riding around through down town Seattle having fun and enjoying life and one careless act takes that all away.
It makes me sad.
I was also wondering about the insurance angle… as well as a waiver of liability, or the responsibility of the parties involved if something happens.
Not necessarily something like THIS, though; my heart goes out to the persons affected by this. How horrifying.
Even sadder is that there might not have been a \”careless act\”. Accidents do happen and while some are avoidable, some are not.
This hill may be ridden by that same driver on the same pedicab a dozen times a day. One incident, however horrific as it may be, does not indicate negligence or carelessness.
My sympathies to everyone involved.
OMG – that sucks!!
I never rode a pedicab, but seems clear to me that this things are very different than normal bikes. Don\’t have the same mobility. I think that rolling a red light on a bike can be done safely, but I don\’t think that applies to pedicabs…
Keeping the families of all involved in my Prayers…
God Bless
KWW, that\’s an excellent question. To a certain extent, pedicab drivers experience, skill and ability, not unlike the operators of other kinds of passenger conveyance, is directly connected to the safety of their passengers.
I wonder if it\’s possible that pedicab drivers are having their passengers sign a liability waiver.
re; lights on pedicabs: a couple weeks ago, I saw a pedicab with a teeny weeny tailight, barely visible. This was on SW Broadway and Taylor. I haven\’t had the opportunity to note what others have for lights, but considering the size of a pedicab passenger compartment, and the job they\’re doing, it seems like they should have better than that. Turn signals might be a good idea too. The pedicab driver I saw, made a swift move from the right side of Broadway to the left. It was hard to see the pedicab drivers hand signals beyond the passenger compartment.
Horrible situation.
The street the Pedicab was going down is RIDICLOUSLY steep. I wouldn\’t go down it on a standard bike (Not placing blame, just emphasising the extreme nature of the incline).
From reports in the local papers (PI, and Times), the cab collided with the van, then the scooter apparently ran into the crashed cab. Reports also have witnesses saying that the (Pedicab)driver was screaming as they descended (an attempt to warn people about something wrong perhaps? the reports are unclear as to the nature of the shouting).
All in all, lame situation throughout. an older couple out for a fun touristy ride, and now one of them is gone.
My heart goes out to them.
Is anyone familiar with teh braking systems on those things?
do back up systems exist…say hand/cable brakes and foot brakes?
just curious. sad circumstance.
Bahueh,
I think most run at least a coaster brake with a Kick brake back-up. but the models pictured above show front brakes (both disc and V-brake). It seems as though they can run the gamut.
Some older models I have seen have only a coaster brake with a back-up kick-brake (the latter being little more than a leather pad applied directly to the axle). I hope this wasn\’t one of them.
The streets in that part of town are cobbled/really bumpy. That could pop a chain off and basically make that thing a roller-coaster (God forbid).
I have taken pedicabs for a test pedals in cleveland and portland and I also operate something of a bicycle train as the family bike/minivan around portland = tandem, trailabike and trailer all connected. It\’s about weight and stopping distance and handling loads.
The pedicabs were much more compact than our train and each had really solid braking systems = meaning I can\’t remember specifics but it did not feel like a barely slowing us down sort of set up. It felt quite safe to operate – but every rig should be operated within its limits. For instance, on our cross canada ride, my Santana bike train had a set of good touring brakes which I inspected and kepted in good nick the entire trip, in addition it comes with a disc brake on the rear wheel – that I use as something of a parachute, feathering it out to slow us down on any big hills ( and cursing it when I realize on the flats or uphill that I have forgotten to release it completely) – I use it in concert with my front and rear brakes on those hills- I sometimes set it halfway to bleed off speed while I used the regular fr and back brakes as needed/normal. A full lock of it is dangerous unless you ease it into full lock – otherwise be ready to fight a slide/dumping of the whole thing. There were a few hills in urban areas cross country when I simply used everything I had, stopped and got off to walk the rig the rest of the way to safety or skipped it for a walk from the top or a different route.
These days, as I go back and forth from a single bike to a bike with trailer to the big train, I make a conscious effort to remember what I\’m pulling behind me and how much time and effort I\’ll need to stop and what is a safe speed to go down hill.
On the pedicab in question – I wonder if the mechanics found anything else that could have thrown off the stopping ability? I know that a blown tire can really throw off my rig, as well as a blown chain – it doesn\’t effect the braking system but it throws me off in general.
I can\’t imagine a pedicab operator just blasting through the light unless he/she lost control or had catastopic machanical failure.
Heart goes out to everyone involved
The band-type brake that works against a drum on the rear axle will lock the one rear wheel very easily. That is the problem, only one rear wheel brakes (and drives) on most pedicabs. This is how it is on the Chineses ones (San Lun Che). They are usually freewheel. You can get much more braking power on a pedicab out of the front wheel.
Seattle has hills that rival San Francisco. It\’s not flat like Portland. It is concievable that there was a cable failure or that even the pads overheated and disintegrated on a long enough hill with the weight of a pedicab and 3 adults.
I think that pedicabs should have a disc brake up front. I really don\’t think a cantilever or v-brake is up to hauling down close to 800lbs.
when braking load is transfered to the front. ive got a CAT front loading cargo bike/ longhaul frame. my rear drum brake, on an 8 speed hub, does nothing down a hill with 200lbs load plus my own 135lbs. I wish i had discs on front and back. i wish i had a dual front disc. my front is a disc brake and coming down mt tabor you really need to slow your descent early on.
I operate a cab for cascadia, and most of the Chinese cabs they run dont have a backup brake, just the band brake, which can be operated with either your hand on a lever or a push pedal with your foot. The band brakes are rod actuated and do not have any kind of redundant system built in. I have been begging them to put front brakes on their cabs fearing an incident just like this one.
i don\’t know about seattle.
but i almost always see at least a couple pedicab drivers here in portland sucking back beers while they deliver people around town on the weekends.
whether it\’s radio cab or a pedicab, i\’d prefer to have a sober driver.
My name is Jonathan Magnus owner of Pdx Pedicab the fleet of Orange Cabs ( and one U of O green). I would like to provide some feedback on a few of the pedicab related posts regarding safety. Let me start by saying I can only speak regarding the type of pedicabs my company uses, which are manufactured by Mainstreet Pedicab\’s. You can find more specific information on them at http://www.pedicab.com. These are not the same as the one involved in the accident.
Lighting:
Our cabs have nighttime running lights, brake lights and turn signals.
Safety:
All of our cabs are equipped with seat belts and passengers are encouraged to wear them.
We have a no tolerance drug and alcohol policy.
Braking:
Our cabs use a Magura hydraulic disk brake system and separate front brakes.
Insurance:
Our company carries a blanket policy that covers our riders and passengers in the event of accident.
I also can be seen most evenings piloting one of my cabs as a driver which allows me to keep a personal account of our company and those who represent it.
This is a devastating tragedy and my heart goes out to those involved.
Please don\’t hesitate to contact me directly if you have any specific questions I can answer.
I used to be a pedicab driver back in Savannah Georgia and I can\’t even begin to imagine the horrifics of this kinda thing… it\’s greatly saddening for all involved. Our bikes were always really well maintained, as I\’m sure these were… but it doesn\’t take much to have one thing pop out if place to put a cab out of commission for the night. Plus, you\’ve always got to think of the kind of roads you\’ll be riding on and personally – not that we had any huge hills in SAV – I imagine that hill was probably not the best route for the cab to take. We had a road was full of bars (and probably a good amount of money from people wanting to go to and fro…) but it was a cobble stone road and full of ruts that would easily pop our chains off in no time flat. When requested to take that route, we\’d always take people to the start and send them on their way.
I am I Bicycle Mechanic and a former driver of the Hillsboro Pedicab, so I can personally say that with a rig that big (150+lb pedicab, 150+lb driver, 3 passengers–lets say 300lbs, that\’s 600lbs of bike and people to stop! It doesn\’t matter what kind of braking system you have or how good of condition it is in…that kind of weight takes EXTRA stopping distance. I don\’t know the specifics of the accident, but I can only imagine trying to stop for a light on one of the many hills in Seattle. The fortunate thing is that most people taking a pedicab are not in a hurry, but please realize that slow is safe in a pedicab.
Cool to see so many past and present pedicab drivers chiming in. I\’ll add my two cents.
Around 1993, we launched Pedicabs of New York [PONY], with 6 refurbished cabs. We acquired a pile of pedicabs-n-parts that represented maybe 15 – 20 pedicabs when in good form, that were stored away for many years. These were beautiful old pedicabs from the 70\’s, that were operated in Hawaii for years.
I did a lot of the refurbishing work – they actually had a differential so that both rear wheels were driven, and both braked. We had a hydraulic disc on the rear axle, originally manufactured for motorcycles. We also had a front drum brake.
You have to be careful with disc brakes because the leverage on the fork where the pads are grabbing the rotor is huge – and can bend a standard fork easily.
We opted to not have a tight lap belt, but added a seatbelt-type strap across the seating area, just to catch people from falling out on sudden deceleration.
I remember when Main Street Pedicabs was just getting started with manufacturing, and making some modern pedicabs of good quality.
On to traffic safety …
I am seeing a lot of disturbing pedicab driver behavior downtown, and elsewhere.
Some cabs are well-lit, and others are ridiculously dark. There are also plenty of illegal moves, to bypass traffic lights, or get to where someone may be hailing.
It\’s a serious responsibility, and I\’m glad that Jonathon M. is commited to safety – that\’s the only way this wonderful activity won\’t get stopped.
Thrash me if you will, but I think we need a lot more enforcement of traffic rules … and particularly for drivers who take other\’s welfare into their back seats.
I witnessed the pedicab crash in Belltown. I was one of the people who reported to the police that from what I saw it seemed as if the brakes had failed. The driver was screaming at the top of his lungs \”I can\’t stop, I can\’t stop\” and both the driver and passengers were screaming and terrified. If the driver had been trying to stop and the brakes were working wouldn\’t it have slowed even slightly? The pedicab did not slow down at all, even gaining speed by the time it entered the intersection. This was all in the blink of an eye, they were going so fast.
I have not been able to sleep since witnessing the accident. At the time I did not understand what was happening, it all happened so quickly. I am deeply mournful for the family of this gentleman and all the circumstances surrounding this are incredibly sad. May he rest in peace, and may his family find some closure in what I believe – having seen the entire thing – that God must\’ve decided to take him. Everyone was powerless to stop it.
Does PDX pedicab have any insurance?
Insurance is absolutely necessary at all times! Both the pedicab rental businessowner and the pedicab operator, if the operator is not an employee of the pedicab businessowner are required to have insurance in a claim like this. Our condolences to all concerned. Suggestion to the Anonymous witness, you too have a claim on the pedicab insurance policy because of the trauma you received by viewing the accident. Please contact a lawyer for further information, you deserve the consideration, as I too have witnessed a horrible incident and I understand your feelings, loss of sleep, changed life pattern and anxiety.
I work with an insurance agency that specializes in insuring the pedicab industry, due to the lowest premiums and extended policy coverage\’s in the market. We are licensed in several other states, and are obtain licenses in more, including Washington just for the greatly under-served pedicab industry. We offer a free online rater for premium indications in California and telephone indications by phone for other states. We will insure pedicab companies that hire riders or lease cabs or both. We also insure independent riders, most of whom do not have coverage due to the cost. This accident will be felt in the insurance industry, please see this website for further information regarding coverage for pedicabs… http://www.califorinainsuranceweb.com/pedicab or 877-739-3974.
The correct link is here…. http://www.californiainsuranceweb.com/pedicab/
I own a small pedicab company in Texas. When shopping for cabs, I have seen the types of cabs that Cascadia runs. They are unsafe and they know it. butthey are cheap, so they bought them. tragedy.
They operate unsafe rickety cheap bikes with no brakes – yes , I consider that NO BRAKES – and someone dies. Out of business please. Leave it to those of us who care enough about our passengers and business to make it safe. Make me furious, not just sad.
This tragedy sickens me. \”Negligent breach of duty\” is what I would term providing a rental vehicle that is not fit for use in the city where it is being rented.
The brakes on this vehicle could not stop it.
I have been collecting information about this accident on my website. Feel free to check it out:
http://austinpedicab.org/category/seattle-accidents/
I currently ride a pedalcab on a Cascadia cab and feel that this isolated incident is very unfortunate and tragic. I also feel that these cabs are quite safe under safe conditions. I have been riding pedal cabs for more than two years and STRONGLY feel this one incident should not disuade people from utilizing our form of transport.
The folks at Cascadia are all impacted deeply by this occurence and take our jobs very seriouly! We love what we do and we are dedicated to the maintenance and safety of cabs and cab drivers.
Tha accusations of one \”r\” about seeing pedicab drivers \’swilling down beers while delivering passengers\’ is just wrong and vicious. I do often however see many swilling much more than beers and driving their cars and trucks down streets every weekend. Perhaps the thought of a safe and sober pedicab ride from a bar of their choice could get them home to read more about the dangers of having too many motor vehicles on the streets of America and around the world.
I will continue to believe and know that new forms of transport should be encouraged for us and our childrens world. It takes progress-please be supportive! All of us need support-all of ours to the family of the victims and all involved.