4.30pm is the worst time to hail a cab in New York City. My advice: take a pedicab instead.

A pedicab, one of those bicycle powered rickshaws is a summer staple of Manhattan. Not only are they eco-friendly and fun to ride in, they can also be your knight in shining armor.

Here’s my pedicab to the rescue story…

Flashback to the summer of 2012:  It’s 4:45pm. It’s raining and it’s 15 minutes until my bus leaves for DC. I’ve been standing outside trying to hail a cab for 25 mins. Everyone’s off duty and I’m infuriated. I’m having a heart attack because I’m going to miss the last Tripper bus of the day going to Arlington, VA where I’m supposed to meet my friend Anna. And I already missed the earlier bus that I was supposed to catch. Argh. Off-duty cab after off-duty cab and another 5 minutes pass me by. 10 mins left until my bus leaves! I’m not sure what to do anymore. My clothes are soaked and I’m screaming inside. Suddenly, the solution appears. Low and behold, a pedicab pulls up before me.

I only need to go 3 avenues away, I tell him. 30 bucks, he says. I only have 20. He says 25. I only have 20 in cash and I need to catch my bus pronto.

Although a cab is much cheaper, I’d pay extra for the human powered vehicle as long as I don’t miss my bus!!!

He helps me put my two suitcases for my month long Best of the Road trip on his little vehicle and pedals his mighty legs through the sheets of rain and zig zagging through congested traffic and even through a red light. Go Mr. Pedicab Man!

We get to my bus 2 mins shy of it’s departure. Whew! A BIG thank you to Mr. Pedicab Man. I am eternally grateful.