‘It gives people a chance to feel the wind in their hair’ – retired volunteers helping people escape isolation with free trishaw rides
Volunteers who began giving their time after retirement to take older people and those with mobility issues on free “trishaw” rides across Fingal say the experience has become one of the most rewarding parts of their lives.
Trishaws are three-wheeled rickshaw-type vehicles which can be either motor or pedal-powered.
John Coleman has spent almost six decades on two wheels, cycling across Ireland, exploring Europe and travelling along coastal paths and canals.
But the 72-year-old said some of the most memorable journeys of his life have come since retirement – taking people on free trishaw rides around Skerries.
“I’ve been cycling since I was 14, and biking around Ireland and in Europe as well,” he said.
“When I retired, I was able to bring my bike on the train, go to different places, cycle the canals and some of the coastal paths as well.
“Then when the opportunity came to cycle the trishaw, I jumped at it. I like cycling, I’m retired, I’m here, and I can take people out whenever they want to go out.”
Mr Coleman is one of a group of volunteers of Fingal County Council’s Cycling Without Age programme, which gives older people, nursing home residents and people with mobility issues the chance to get outdoors.
Cycling Without Age (CWA) was founded in Copenhagen in 2012 by Ole Kassow. The programme uses specially designed trishaw bikes ridden by volunteer cyclists, who are known as community trishaw pilots.
Fingal County Council launched the scheme in 2022 and it operates four trishaws across the county – in Skerries, Malahide Castle, St Catherine’s Park and the Baldoyle to Portmarnock Greenway.
Originally from Monkstown, Mr Coleman worked as a civil engineering technician, first with Dublin County Council before later joining Fingal County Council. He subsequently worked with IDA Ireland, dealing with mapping, land acquisition and property projects across the country.
After getting married, he and his wife decided to move northside when they could not afford a larger home in Monkstown with a child on the way.
“We looked at Malahide, Lusk and Skerries and ended up settling in Skerries,” he said.
“It is amazing. Three kids, everything here on the doorstep, and then cafes, restaurants and pubs in the harbour. It’s an ideal place to live.”
Now retired, he remains involved in local life.
“I’m involved in the local walking club, and I do a lot of walking. I’m a walk leader as well. I’m also fully involved in our local film society here, so I’ve got plenty to keep me occupied and keep me active,” he said
“I also chose to volunteer to be a pilot on the trishaw because I enjoy cycling so much, and if I could bring enjoyment to other people in cycling the trishaw, well then, that’s great.”
He has now spent the last four years as a community trishaw pilot, taking passengers along Skerries’ coastal route and around the harbour.
“I get to chat to the people who are on it, what they’re doing and why they booked and what they would like to see. We give them a little history of Skerries, the islands, what they’re looking at, and anything else that’s interesting down around the harbour. They also get free ice-cream,” he said.
“There is always a lovely interaction. People give the passengers the royal wave, and they wave back.”
Many of those who use the service are residents of nursing homes, and Mr Coleman said the programme gives them a break from their usual routine.
“It’s just a change of scene,” he said. “Obviously they’ve got other activities as well, but just to get out into the air, see the scenery and have that social engagement with people is important.”
Mr Coleman added that every community could benefit from a similar initiative.
“Cycling has no age limit,” he said. “There’s also no age limit for people who want to go on the trishaw as well.”
Martin Dooley, a fellow volunteer for the Malahide Castle location, become a trishaw pilot four years ago after retiring from a career teaching engineering at TU Dublin.
The 71-year-old from Drumcondra said the opportunity allowed him to combine his love of cycling with helping others.
“I recently retired, and since my teenage years I’ve been volunteering with various organisations,” he said.
“I like cycling, and I’ve always liked cycling. And when I became aware that this facility was available, I was interested in it, and I volunteered because I like interacting with people.
“The people I take on the trishaw get a great deal of enjoyment from it. It’s a novel experience, and it costs me very little effort or very little time. But the enjoyment they get from it is far out of proportion, way beyond the effort that goes in.”
One ride in particular has stayed with him.
“Recently I had two passengers that were two 90-year-old ladies,” he said.
“They went to parts of the park that they had never seen before, and they could not stop talking about it. For them, it just felt like a holiday.”
Mr Dooley also volunteers with Age Action, teaching IT skills to older people who may otherwise struggle to keep pace with changing technology.
He said tackling isolation is one of the reasons he continues to volunteer.
“I think a lot of older people become isolated and lose contact with people because their friends either move away or pass on,” he said.
“I enjoy working with people, and the reason I volunteer for this and the reason I volunteer for Age Action is because of the interaction with people. They get a benefit and I get a benefit. Better than sitting at home with the television.
“As people get older and their range of activities gets smaller, their world gets smaller, and something like this can make a very positive contribution to that.
“When you get to a certain age, people dismiss you and think you’re finished, but in reality, those people have a wealth of experience that’s being rejected, and that’s a shame. If you look at other cultures, older people are really valued.
“I’ve been involved in voluntary work since I was 20, and it took me a while to realise that I got more from it than I gave to it.”
Stephen McGinn, Fingal County Council’s walking and cycling officer, said the council introduced the programme after seeing the impact Cycling Without Age was having elsewhere.
“We just felt it was an amazing initiative that would open up locations in Fingal to people with limited mobility and give them the chance to feel the wind in their hair while getting some fresh air,” he said.
Since launching in 2022, more than 50 volunteers have been trained as pilots, with staff from disability services and home-care organisations also receiving training to increase the number of trips available.
However, Mr McGinn added that transport remains one of the biggest challenges facing the programme, with many older people living alone or in care homes struggling to travel to and from the trishaws.
He said the programme plays an important role in helping older people stay connected with their communities.
“It gives people the opportunity to get out in their local community, meet people and have conversations, and the occasional ice-cream,” he said.
“Cycling Without Age is part of the overall puzzle when it comes to improving the quality of life for older adults in our communities.”