Pedal Power: Dhaka’s Rickshaw Runners – Part 1

I’d just finished taking photos for The School of  Hope, a slum school in Dhaka’s northern edge, when I stumbled upon it.

A gaggle of bicycle rickshaws, crowded inside a rusted and drooping barbed wire fence baking in the early morning sun.

The livery was bustling with drivers, mechanics, shop keepers, and even children (I’m guessing at work with their parent) preparing to start the days pedaling.

Rickshaws (both auto and bicycle) are one of the most common forms of transportation in Dhaka, whose drivers spend countless hours shuttling passengers around the city.

The drivers are known for their intrepidness (maybe craziness) and garish sense of style.

Bangladeshi bicycle rickshaws are decked out in a cacophony colors, streamers, bells, and more often than not, a jumble of bicycle parts welded to construction materials like rebar and metal plates.

These guys (they’re all men) have ripped calves, as you can imagine, from riding for 12+ hours a day and grizzled, road weary faces…check out photos below and stay tuned for more photos of rickshaw drivers and the mechanics and shop keepers who keep these guys caffeinated and rolling.