Young inventor of electric rickshaw wins prize

Lauded as a product to combat traffic congestion the electrically-assisted single-passenger Quikshaw is being promoted as an eco taxi-style vehicle.

Boocock, a student at the Royal College of Art in London, will spend his £2000 prize on trips to the United States and to Denmark and Belgium to gain information for developing his invention, designed for urban trips of one to five miles.

According to a press release the Quikshaw is unfeasibly thin:

Unlike a conventional rickshaw, the Quikshaw is no wider than an ordinary bicycle and can reach speeds of 15mph.

Boocock believes he has re-invented the wheel:

"Since 70 percent of urban taxi journeys involve only one passenger, it makes no sense to occupy so much road and use so much energy to transport that individual, and the Quikshaw is my response to the need for a new approach.

"I want to improve urban transport and give people a viable low-impact door to door alternative."

(Has the man never heard of bicycles?)

Nick Moy, MD of global quality standards at the British Standards Institution, said: "This is exactly the innovation the award was set up to inspire."

Sir Clive Sinclairs C5 will be spinning in its grave.