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These are alots of in Karachi old 1 people said come from Italy & nowadays new came cng kit Rikshaw 3 seater 6 seater & 9 seater too

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I guess you mean the old piaggos? right?

I also featured some of the back stories here (including the qingqis of Lahore https://makeshiftmobility.substack.com/p/7-makeshift-names-and-machines

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Hi Benjie,

This is really an exciting topic for me as a Placemaker and public realm enthusiast. Having lived in India and in New York and having visited Cuba for a Travel Fellowship at Pratt Institute, I 100% agree with you about informal transit being a life blood gloabally. I was surprised to know that even in New York City, there exists this alternative informal travel option, called Dollar Vans that operate out of the Flatbush area. Apparently, the Carribbean population living in that neighborhood, brought this transit option to Flatbush, a popular way of commuting in their hometowns. They are a really interesting case and often come out of the immigrant communities resourcefulness or in many cases the incaccessibility or lack of connectivity of existing modes of transit. I really look forward to the upcoming articles! Happy to help in any way I can!

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Hi Dhanya,

I’m glad this topic excites you, too. And yes, the dollar vans in Brooklyn are informal transport. I believe they’ve been there for a while and also served areas like East NY and Brownsville.

Other US cities have them, too. There are the jitneys in Miami that take people to the beach or to the keys. There are caminionetas in the cities in the southeast US, too.

Yes, please. Do send me links that you think are interesting.

B

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