May 3, 2024

Pedal cabs are back in Sioux Falls, and this time, profits from the small business will be used to benefit a nonprofit organization.

Terry Grateful Liggins bought Sioux Falls Pedicabs from Emmett Reistroffer almost a year ago but did not have the time to get it up and operational last summer.

Now, however, the muscle-powered transportation will make its first appearance tonight at the May Art & Wine Walk hosted by Downtown Sioux Falls Inc.

Liggins will be one of the operators traveling up and down Phillips Avenue from 5 to 8 p.m. — longer if demand is great enough. The second pedal cab also will be out, and a third person will be ready to give the other two drivers time to rest.

“The experience is really what it’s all about,” Liggins said of this mode of transportation.

The pedicabs haven’t been seen in Sioux Falls since 2021 when Reistroffer rented them from a Twin Cities business.

Liggins has lived in Sioux Falls for 11 years and been a South Dakota resident for 20. He owns and operates two small businesses, one for profit and one as a nonprofit, which offer life-skill development, character coaching and leadership training. The nonprofit, Hurdle Life Coach Foundation, focuses on youth and adult coaching and mentorships.

Liggins’ pedicab business, renamed We Care Pedal Cab Service, will pay some of the wages and pay for the needs of the nonprofit, he said.

“It will sustain it to do the training we do,” he said.

Liggins operated a pedicab 20-some years ago in Omaha in the summer after his first year of college.

“I remember how fun it was and how appreciative and how grateful the riders were,” he said. “When Emmett brought this to Sioux Falls, it was a great idea then and a better idea now.”

The return of the pedal cabs gives him the chance to be part of something special and contribute to what he calls “the dynamic growth in culture happening in Sioux Falls.” Adding such an experience for residents and visitors will be a good fit to that culture, he said.

Liggins has envisioned three routes for the pedicabs to travel; operating them regularly will mean the need to bring in a third vehicle, he said. He would like to see his fleet expand to five.

No route schedule has been set up. Those who want to hail a pedicab will watch for an empty one to come back and wave it over at the next stop. The vehicles primarily will travel up and down Phillips and Main avenues from 12th or 13th streets possibly as far north as Eighth Street. The pedicabs will offer rides beginning at 4 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday and cater to brunch crowds on Sunday.

Liggins has received support from the Downtown Sioux Falls organization, he said, and he plans to reach out to Levitt at the Falls organizers to talk about scheduling rides during the 50-concert season.

“I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback already, and I’ve been giving it a trial to figure out where are kinks and make this as safe as possible for operators and passengers,” Liggins said. “I think it will be most simple to get a person from one destination to another rather than facilitating downtown tours, but it’s not out of the question to make that part of what we can do.”

The pedicabs can hold two to three passengers, depending on their size.

Liggins also plans to expand his We Care service-based businesses to include junk-hauling and lawn care. First up, however, is establishing the pedicabs.

“From a selfish standpoint, it’s exciting to me personally to be able to put a thumbprint on the community that I call home and that I’ve been volunteering in generously,” he said. “As we grow over the years, it will be cool to be known for something as special as giving this service to downtown patrons.”