Ciclovía. Apologies for the amateur photography. It was taken off balance on roller-blades....
Bogotá gets a lot of bad press. While some of it is deserving, a whole lot of it is based on the past conditions of the city 10 years ago. As a consequence, few people outside of Colombia are aware of the progressive, positive things going on inside the country.
Every Sunday and public holiday (they have 17 of them), Bogotá prohibits car traffic on its major streets from 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM for an event called Ciclovía.
The streets fill with your traditional walkers, runners, bikers, skaters, and roller-bladers — but aerobics/yoga instructors, musicians, and people riding their own original creations come out as well.
Out of 6 million city residents, over 2 million citizens participate. Beginning in the late 1970’s, Ciclovía currently occupies over 70 miles of city streets. Quite a contrast to the rest of the week: heavy traffic, pollution, and the inevitable chaos of a big city.
There is quite a lot of pride surrounding the car-free event. People praise the environmental benefits. Many of the folks that help make Ciclovía happen are volunteers. When a Congressman tried to introduce a bill in 2007 to shorten the hours, the people of Bogotá protested and won.
While Bogotá is credited as the birthplace of Ciclovía it has caught on in several other countries, including Ecuador, Canada, and the U.S.
For visitors traveling though Bogotá that don’t want to surrender their Saturday nightlife, it’s worth it one night to wake up before 2:00 P.M. or party past 7:00 A.M. Do one of those things and you will get a chance to see it.
If you’re not in Bogotá but want to see Ciclovía in action, check out this short video by StreetFilms.org
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Your right on Portland, there are a few other cities and towns across the US that practice ciclovia, in a annual, monthly or seasonal fashion. Major cities:
El Paso, Miami, Cleveland, San Francisco, and Roanoke.
Excellent post mabogota! Thanks for shedding light on Ciclovia. Which cities in the US have similar programs? I have a hunch that Portland is one of them.