Human-powered transport is the transport of person(s) and/or goods (freight) using human muscle power. Unlike animal-powered transport, human-powered transport has existed since time immemorial in the form of walking, running and swimming, as well as small vehicles such as litters, rickshaws, wheelchairs and wheelbarrows. Modern technology has allowed mechanical advantage devices and machines to enhance human-power.
Although motorization has increased speed and load capacity, many forms of human-powered transport remain popular for reasons of cost, convenience, leisure, physical exercise and environmentalism. Human-powered transport is sometimes the only type available, especially in underdeveloped or inaccessible regions.
Human terrestrial locomotion except for crawling and swimming is a form of bipedalism and includes:
Climbing, hiking, backpacking and mountaineering
Ice skating, roller skating, and inline skating
Most of these involve some equipment such as shoes, clothing and accessories.
Personal travel, the change of location of the involved person's body including clothing and materials required for the trip, for commuting and work, or tourism and sport.
Transport of material using equipment such as backpacks, trolleys, carts, wheelbarrows and sleds.
Transport of a child or further people, as with a toy wagon or a rickshaw.
Skateboards have the advantage of being so small and light that users can easily carry them when not skating.
The most efficient and most popular human-powered land vehicle is the bicycle. Compared to the much more common upright bicycle, an otherwise similar recumbent bicycle is faster on level ground or down hills due to better aerodynamics. This also applies to the racing bicycle, uphill as well.
The velomobile has potential to be useful in colder and wetter climates due to increased protection offered against the environment. Cargo bikes are used to transport cargo. Cycle rickshaws can be used as taxicabs.
In 2016, AeroVelo cyclist Todd Reichert achieved the human-powered speed record of 142.04 km/h (88.26 mph) with a velomobile at Battle Mountain, Nevada.
Dutch cyclist Fred Rompelberg set a 268.8 km/h (167.0 mph) speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on October 3, 1995, while cycling in the wake of a motor dragster pace-car. The wake of the pace-car reduced the aerodynamic drag against which Rompelberg pedalled to almost zero.
Greg Kolodziejzyk set two world records recognized by both the International Human Powered Vehicle Association and Guinness (TM) World Records on July 17, 2006, on a race track in Eureka, California. The first record is for the most distance traveled in 24 hours by human power 1,041 km (647 mi), and the second for the world's fastest 1,000 km (621 mi) time trial (23 hours, 2 minutes).
Both records were broken on August 6, 2010, by Christian von Ascheberg who drove 1,000 km (621 mi) in 19 hours, 27 minutes and managed to go 1,219 km (757 mi) in 24 hours with his Milan SL Velomobile. In the same race he also raised the 12-hour record to 664.97 km (413 mi), which is an average of 55.41 km/h (34 mph).
In 1969, artists in a small Northern California town began the Kinetic sculpture race which has grown to a 42 mi (68 km), three-day all terrain, human-powered sculpture race and county wide event. It is held every year on the last weekend in May.
The Shweeb system is a proposed transit network using recumbent bicycle technology to power pods suspended from monorails. A test built in Rotorua, New Zealand is open to the public as a leisure attraction. In September 2010 the system was chosen to receive funding from Google as part of project 10100. There are no active proposals for its implementation.