A standard wheelbarrow, with the wheel at the front, places about half the weight of the load on the operator. A load-centered wheelbarrow places the wheel in the center of the load, shifting 90% or more of the weight to the wheel instead of the operator. This allows the device to be used for distance hauling on narrow paths.
The load-centered wheelbarrow is an ancient Chinese design. Cargo was placed around and above a large (about 1m diameter) wheel. This allowed operators to transport heavy loads (including passengers) many kilometers on narrow footpaths. ECHO developed a design that is scaled down to use a bicycle wheel. Details for how to construct and use this load-centered wheelbarrow are described in ECHO Technical Note 101.