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Birmingham Pedal Tours

Birmingham Pedal Tours

Pedal-powered trolley tour companies will soon be operating in Birmingham.

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday approved an ordinance allowing pedal buses and pedal bus services to operate in the city. Only pre-arranged tours are allowed, and the companies can't accept on-demand fares.

The vehicles can only operate on roadways with a 35 miles per hour or less speed limit, but the vehicles can't operate faster than 15 miles per hour, according to the ordinance. No one under the age of 18 can ride in a pedal bus.

The ordinance gives the council the right to limit the number of pedal bus services that can operate in the city.

Last month, the council approved low-speed cab companies, like JoyRide to operate in Magic City.

The first pedal bus company, Birmingham Pedal Tours, is expected to be up and running by mid-May, said Jason Kobza, company co-owner.

"We are incredibly excited and honored that the city will allow us to operate," he said.

Kobza said the trolley tours will "bridge the gap between the breweries, restaurants and bars" and bring more tourists to downtown and Southside Birmingham.

Birmingham Pedal Tour's pedal trolleys can hold up to 14 passengers. The vehicles also have an electric-assist.

Tours will last two hours and are perfect for pub crawls, birthday celebrations and bachelor/bachelorette parties, Kobza said. Tours will start and end at Trim Tab Brewing in Southside.

Kobza declined to share the tour routes as the company is still awaiting approval from the city's traffic engineer.

According to Birmingham Pedal Tour's website, though, tour groups can choose their own routes through downtown, Lakeview and Avondale. The website also lists public pub crawls and private tours.

Passengers can pick their own music and bring their own snacks for the doors.

Birmingham Pedal Tours is now accepting reservations for June. Click here for more information.