thumb|300x300px|Pulled rickshaw, [[Kolkata, 2004]]
A pulled rickshaw (from Japanese ) is a mode of human-powered transport by which a runner draws a two-wheeled cart that seats one or two people.
In recent times the use of human-powered rickshaws has been discouraged or outlawed in many countries due to concern for the welfare of rickshaw workers. In the 19th century, rickshaw pulling became an inexpensive, popular mode of transportation across Asia. It was "the deadliest occupation in the East, [and] the most degrading for human beings to pursue."
In the city of Shanghai, public rickshaws were painted yellow to differentiate them from the private vehicles of the wealthy citizens, which were described as:
<blockquote>... always shiny, were carefully maintained, and sported 'a spotless white upholstered double seat, a clean plaid for one's lap, and a wide protective tarpaulin to protect the passenger (or passengers, since sometimes up to three people rode together) against the rain.</blockquote>
The rickshaws were a convenient means of travel, able to traverse winding, narrow city streets. During monsoon season, passengers might be carried out of the carriage, above the flooded streets, to the door of their arrival. They offered door-to-door travel, unlike scheduled public bus and tram service.
Madagascar
thumb|250px|Pousse-pousse in [[Madagascar]]
Rickshaws, known as pousse-pousse, were introduced by British missionaries. The intention was to eliminate the slavery-associated palanquin. Its name, pousse-pousse, meaning push-push, is reportedly gained from the need to have a second person to push the back of the rickshaw on Madagascar's hilly roads. They are a common form of transport in a number of Malagasy cities, especially Antsirabe, but are not found in the towns or cities with very hilly roads. They are similar to Chinese rickshaws and are often brightly decorated.
Nairobi
Rickshaws operated in Nairobi in the beginning of the 20th century; pullers went on strike there in 1908.
South Africa
Durban is famous for its iconic Zulu rickshaw pullers navigating throughout the city. These colorful characters are famous for their giant, vibrant hats and costumes. They were introduced into Natal by Sir Marshall Campbell in the 1890s. There were about 2,000 registered men who pulled rickshaws in Durban in 1904. Since displaced by motorised transport, there are approximately 25 rickshaws left who mostly cater to tourists today.
Asia
thumb|[[Confucius (transported in a wheeled cart) and children, as imagined by a 17th-century Chinese artist; presumably, the design is similar to the vehicles used at the time. (Illustration from a children's book, Xiao er lun, printed in 1680)]]
China
In China, from ancient times until the 19th century, rich and important people, when traveling overland, were commonly transported in sedan chairs carried by bearers, rather than in wheeled vehicles. This was at least partly explained by road conditions.
It is thought that it was from China (or East Asia in general) that sedan chair (a.k.a. "palanquin") designs were introduced into Western Europe in the 17th century.
However, wheeled carts for one or two passengers, pushed (rather than pulled, like a proper rikshaw) by a human servant, were attested as well.
thumb|Rickshaw and driver in [[Qingdao, c. 1914]]
In the 19th century, the wheelbarrow was the most popular transportation for commoners. In the spring of 1873, the French merchant Menard introduced the rickshaw from Japan. The original name is "Jinrikisha", meaning "man-power-vehicle" in Japanese. Most of the rickshaws were owned by foreign investors at the beginning, but in around the 1900s, rickshaws were owned mostly by Chinese companies. The official name for rickshaw is "renliche", meaning "man-power-vehicle" in Chinese, but it is more commonly called "dongyangche", meaning "east-foreign-vehicle", or "huangbaoche" in Shanghai, meaning "yellow carriage for rent".
Rickshaw transportation was an important element in urban development in 20th-century China as a mode of transportation, source of employment, and facilitator of migration for workers. According to author David Strand:
<blockquote>Sixty thousand men took as many as a half million fares a day in a city of slightly more than one million. Sociologist Li Jinghan estimated that one out of six males in the city between the ages of sixteen and fifty was a puller. Rickshaw men and their dependents made up almost 20 percent of Beijing's population.</blockquote>
Most manual rickshaws – seen by many Maoists as a symbol of oppression of the working class – were eliminated in China after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
Shanghai
Shanghai's rickshaw industry began in 1874 with 1,000 rickshaws imported from Japan. By 1914 there were 9,718 vehicles. The pullers were a large group of the city's working poor: 100,000 men pulled rickshaws by the early 1940s, up from 62,000 in the mid-1920s.
In contrast to coolies in Beijing, those in Shanghai mostly come from rural areas outside the city. With the destitution of their land, they poured into the city with their family. As the number of coolies rose up sharply, however, the number of rickshaws remained at 20,000 in Shanghai. Except for private coolies, those for public work had to take turns, and thus their average income diminished to $9 per month. Therefore, many coolies worked in the factory and ran the rickshaw after work. However, many coolies were optimistic about life. They were satisfied with their income and dreamed of purchasing their own rickshaws and sending their kids to schools. Due to this low income, many coolies would not give customers a clear idea of the standard price and thus charge higher at any chance they had. In response to this phenomenon, hotels would provide the distance to various streets and the price charged.
Hong Kong
right|thumb|Outside the Lion Pavilion Lookout in 2011 on [[Victoria Peak|The Peak, Hong Kong, can find this last licensed rickshaw ride in this ex-British colony.]]
Rickshaws were first imported to Hong Kong from Japan in 1880. They were a popular form of transport for many years, peaking at more than 3,000 in the 1920s. However, their popularity waned after World War II. No new licenses for rickshaws have been issued since 1975, and only a few old men—three as of 2017—still hold a license. It is reported that only one of them still offers rickshaw rides on The Peak, mainly for tourists. But he retired in 2020.
India
Around 1880, rickshaws appeared in India, first in Simla. At the turn of the century, it was introduced in Kolkata (Calcutta), India, and in 1914 was a conveyance for hire. "the last bastion of human powered tana rickshaws". Hindu and Muslim pullers often share housing. Some pullers sleep in the streets in their rickshaws.
As of 2008, many of the Kolkata rickshaw pullers originate from Bihar, considered to be one of the poorest states in India.|group="nb" According to Trillin, most Kolkata rickshaws serve people "just a notch above poor" who tend to travel short distances. However, in a recent article by Hyrapiet and Greiner, the authors found that rickshaws also transport middle-class residents who use their services out of convenience and for short-distance trips to the local marketplace. Rickshaws are used to transport goods, shoppers, and school children.