Gregg Zuman, the co-founder of the New York City Pedicab Owners’ Association and owner of Revolution Rickshaws, one of the city’s first pedicab-rental companies, was leaning against his yellow tricycle on the corner of Thirty-third Street and Eighth Avenue, his eyes fixed on the hoards of commuters streaming out the doors of Penn Station. He turned to glance at the lengthening queue of taxis beside him, and then up to the sky, which hinted at rain. “If a toxic taxi can roll, I can roll,” he said. Zuman swung a leg over his bicycle seat, and then paused: “But we don’t do high winds.”
Some believe pedicab drivers take advantage of tourists; recent news of swindlers has not helped. But Zuman—who reincarnated himself as a “pedicab practitioner” ten years ago, after working as a cubicle-bound editor at JPMorgan—aims to prove that wrong, as does Dale McMillian, whose winged sneakers help him swiftly maneuver the streets. In July, long-awaited regulations from the Bloomberg administration, meant to protect pedicab customers, finally took effect. Stories about scams have since decreased, and McMillian notes, “A lot of those guys have disappeared from the streets.”
Success in the pedicab business depends on the art of verbal negotiation; one has to be great at it to survive. But Zuman believes in what he’s selling. When customers enjoy the ride, he says, “I get this great sense of validation. We’re trying to make the city a better place, so the hard sell—when I’ve spent four minutes talking to a potential customer after they’ve said no five times—is often really worth it. I get to make people happy, you know?”
