Human-powered land vehicle in the context of "Pedal cart"

A vehicle (from Latin vehiculum) is a machine designed for self-propulsion, usually to transport people, cargo, or both. The term "vehicle" typically refers to ground transport vehicles such as human-powered land vehicles (e.g. bicycles, tricycles, velomobiles), animal-powered transports (e.g. horse-drawn carriages/wagons, ox carts, dog sleds), motor vehicles (e.g. motorcycles, cars, trucks, buses, mobility scooters) and railed vehicles (trains, trams and monorails), but more broadly also includes cable transport (cable cars and elevators), watercraft (ships, boats and underwater vehicles), amphibious vehicles (e.g. screw-propelled vehicles, hovercraft, seaplanes), aircraft (airplanes, helicopters, gliders and aerostats) and space vehicles (spacecraft, spaceplanes and launch vehicles).

This article primarily concerns the more ubiquitous land vehicles, which can be broadly classified by the type of contact interface with the ground: wheels, tracks, rails or skis, as well as the non-contact technologies such as maglev. ISO 3833-1977 is the international standard for road vehicle types, terms and definitions.

A recumbent bicycle is a bicycle that places the rider in a laid-back reclining position, and often called a human-powered vehicle or HPV, especially if it has an aerodynamic fairing. Recumbents are available in a wide range of configurations, including: long to short wheelbase; large, small, or a mix of wheel sizes; overseat, underseat, or no-hands steering; and rear wheel or front wheel drive. A variant with three wheels is a recumbent tricycle, with four wheels a quadracycle.

Speed recumbents are generally faster than upright bicycles, but they were banned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) in 1934. Recumbent races and records are now overseen by the World Human Powered Vehicle Association (WHPVA), International Human Powered Vehicle Association (IHPVA) and World Recumbent Racing Association (WRRA).