Handcars were originally used for maintenance and inspection on railways, but also for passenger transport in Japan. They were powered by pumping or pedaling and were popular in Australia. Handcar racing is now a recreational sport in many parts of the world, with notable events in California, Pennsylvania, and South Australia.
A handcart is a manual structure built to function on railways. Handcars are typically used on railroads for maintenance or inspection, but can also be used to transport passengers and for recreation. In recent times, racing cars have become a cult sport, spawning several notable events in both America and Australia.
Wagons found their original utility along the railways, where they provided an easier, if slower, alternative to trains. Light and small, handcarts were inexpensive and often ideal for traveling between stations or signal towers to make repairs, deliver supplies, or perform maintenance inspections. Early railroad cars were often powered by a rotating frame that could be pumped by hand to make the car move along the tracks.
Although many designs used a pumped arm to push the car along the tracks, other versions used a pedal-based system similar to a bicycle. Similar to small wagons, pedal-powered handcarts harnessed the power of the legs and were often more efficient and easier to operate. These handcarts allowed the driver to sit back and pedal instead of furiously involving the entire body in pumping the car.
In Japan, handcarts were used as passenger transport for many years. Despite the use of human-powered automobiles, automobile streetcar lines could run up to 6.2 miles (10 km) in length and make multiple trips per day. The heyday of Japanese automobile transportation was between 1895-1910, before new vehicles using horsepower or engines came to replace handcarts.
Australia was and still is a hotbed of hand vehicle activity. Called Kalamazoos after the American manufacturer that imported many of the cars, the Australian carriages were endlessly useful on the huge stretches of railway that began to cross the continent in the 19th and 20th centuries. Many vintage Australian cars have been restored and are on display at various transport museums across the country.
Handcar racing and modern handcar design have emerged as a recreation in many parts of the world. In Santa Rosa, California, the sport has gained considerable fame for its annual Handcar Regatta, which encourages participants to design, build and race decorative yet practical cars through timed runs down a section of railroad. Other car races and festivals are held in York County, Pennsylvania and Cummins, South Australia. While some races encourage teams to build new styles of handcars, others use vintage restored models.
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