Pedal-pubs get Champaign city OK

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) - Champaign city officials are pumping up the idea of the pedal-pub.

The (Champaign) News-Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/1TtJCp4 ) the city council has approved a liquor license that does not permit Slowride Inc. to serve alcohol, but allows riders to bring their own. It will pay $250 a year for the license.

The 20-foot-long, pedal-powered vehicles which travel 4 mph to 7 mph are restricted from streets with speed limits of 35 mph or above.

Owner Steve Bloomstrand also wanted permission to put video advertising on the back but the council voted 5-3 against the idea.

Mike Murphy is owner of Mike 'N Molly's bar. He says the pedal-pubs could bring more undergraduates from Campustown to downtown. But he worried they'd slow traffic.

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Information from: The News-Gazette, http://www.news-gazette.com