A code of conduct is set to be drawn up in an attempt to regulate the use of rickshaws in Oxford - but it will still be illegal to flag one down in the street.

The pedal-powered vehicles fall into a legal grey area and do not require a licence, as long as they only carry passengers who have pre-booked.

But if they want to "ply for hire" in the street, drivers would need a full taxi driver's Hackney Carriage licence - currently restricted to 107 cabs in the city.

The city council's environment scrutiny committee has called for a voluntary code to be drawn up to regulate rickshaws - and has promised to lobby the Government to draw up laws covering use of the vehicles.

Under the council code, rickshaws would need to have insurance and drivers who had passed a cycling proficiency test.

They would also have to be fitted with lights and indicators - and undergo regular inspect- ions.

Committee chairman Sid Phelps said the code would be an improvement on the current situation, but added that new laws were the only realistic way forward if rickshaw operators wanted to ply for hire.

He said: "Everybody wants rickshaws to operate safely in Oxford. We're not against rickshaws - they're a great idea for tourism and sustainable trans- port."

Ted Maxwell, a history student at Balliol College and the grandson of the late Oxford tycoon Robert Maxwell, set up a rickshaw business last September, having spent £10,000 importing five vehicles from the US.

For more than a year he has been lobbying for a change in the law to allow his drivers to be flagged down by fare-paying customers.

He said: "Since last December we have only operated using pre-booked customers, but we are hoping that lobbying the Government will achieve a change in the national law.

"We still want them to be licensed and regulated, but not as taxis, as they are now.

"At the moment we're ticking over, but it's not going to be as successful or as useful to people in Oxford until we can be flagged down - that's all part of the fun."

Mr Maxwell was the first to call for a voluntary code of conduct for the city's rickshaws, based on a similar agreement operating in London. He said it would help improve standards in the absence of licensing.