SAN DIEGO (CNS) – Pedicabs, a bright and noisy fixture of downtown San Diego, could soon face stricter regulations if the San Diego City Council adopts amendments to the city code on Monday.

That item, expected to be heard at the council’s 2 p.m. meeting, would include regulations banning the installation of sound amplification equipment in pedicabs and require operators to provide a price to passengers before boarding on board.

Additionally, proposals to be considered on Monday include more visible display of pedicab fares and licenses.

Councilman Stephen Whitburn, who is proposing the amendments, said his office has received hundreds of complaints from residents, business owners and tourists about the music that often blares from downtown pedicabs.

“The noise typically consists of loud music and sound effects designed to attract the attention of potential passengers among patrons of downtown restaurants, bars, clubs, hotels and event spaces,” a city staff report states . “Excessive noise regularly persists until 2 a.m. or later and disrupts the sleep of residents and hotel guests.”

A law is already in effect prohibiting pedicabs – which have been regulated by the city since 2000 – from playing music or other noises audible more than 50 feet away. However, this distance makes enforcement more difficult, “because police officers must determine whether a pedicab is less or more than fifty feet away.”

Monday’s proposal would seek to ban speakers outright, eliminating any ambiguity.

Another aspect to be addressed by the council includes a common bait-and-switch tactic in which a pedicab operator tells a group of potential passengers that their trip will cost a certain fare. Then, after the ride, the operator will claim that the fare discussed was actually a per person cost, not the cost for all passengers.

According to Whitburn’s office, even when passengers reluctantly pay the bill, the operator may add a “tip” without the passengers’ consent or knowledge. The proposed ordinance aims to combat this scam by requiring operators to provide passengers with “a written and dated invoice that includes the name or trade name of the pedicab operator, the agreed rate per passenger, and the total rate agreed for all passengers, due on arrival at the destination.”

Most pedicab operators are independent contractors for the business owners.

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