Rickshaw company ready to pedal onto Derby's streets

RICKSHAWS could be cycling through Derby's city centre within two months giving free rides to visitors and shoppers.

Derby City Council agreed to license the pedal-powered taxis this month.

It means that the managing director of Robin Hood Rickshaws in Sawley, Lee Todd, can set up his Derby branch of the company, called Ram Rickshaws.

He wants to offer free, environmentally friendly trips from Westfield shopping centre to the Cathedral Quarter and from the railway station to Westfield.

The rickshaws and their riders would be paid for through advertising and sponsorship deals.

And Mr Todd said he has already had discussions with several key players in the city including Westfield, Ram FM and the Cathedral Quarter improvement team.

He said: “Now that the council has agreed to license the vehicles, I am just going back to those organisations now to see if we can finalise deals.”

Mr Todd said the rickshaws could be on the streets as soon as six weeks after a sponsorship deal is agreed.

“Once we have the sponsorship we order the rickshaws because they are painted in the corporate colours of the sponsorship company and have their logo on the roof and wheels,” he said.

“That takes about six weeks and then we seek the individual licence for each rickshaw, which takes a couple more weeks.”

Mr Todd has only one rickshaw in Nottingham at the moment, but said he wanted eight in Derby.

“This would be great for Derby because, as people arrived at the railway station, they would see the city had a free and environmentally friendly way of getting into the centre and to the shops and it would give them a great impression of Derby,” he said.

The idea has been welcomed by businesses.

Vance Reese owns the milkshake outlet Shake Out, in the Strand Arcade, and has a shop in Nottingham as well.

He said: “We advertised on the rickshaw in Nottingham and think the idea to expand into Derby is great.

“This is just what the Cathedral Quarter needs.

“It is just a great way to advertise and they look great to passers-by, plus it is eco-friendly.”

Giles Harwood, vice chairman of the Cathedral Quarter management group, said: “I'm sure this new service will be positively received by the business in Cathedral Quarter and this novel mode of transport will forge stronger links between the Cathedral Quarter and Westfield and will encourage greater circulation of visitors and shoppers around the city centre.”