Bogotá's Car-Free Day - 2003

The past Car-Free Days

Four years ago, former Bogotá mayor, Enrique Peñalosa, brought the first Car-Free Day to many commuters on bike, rollerblades, skateboards and foot (see , "Bogotá Breathes Easy on Car-Free Day" and "Car-Free Bogotá" ) earning the Stockholm Challenge award June of that year. The success of the first Car-Free Day spawned worldwide interest in improving urban quality of life (see info on World Car-Free Day) However, one of the biggest complaints was by those that opted for public transportation that Day. The buses were too packed and along with the taxis traffic was torturously slow. Busstops were disorganized creating a slower flow. The fact that lanes of the capital's arteries were closed off to cyclists and pedestrians didn't help the flow of public vehicles.

The improvements

For the remainder of Peñalosa's term as well as his successor's, Antanas Mockus, the first three lines of a new massive transportation system were installed; Sunday "Ciclovía" (the complete closing-off of many of the city's arteries for leisure biking, skating, etc.) has been revitalized; private and public vehicular rush-hour restriction "pico y placa" (according to the license plate number) was implemented; and many, many miles of bike paths have sprung up all over the city.

2001

Prior to the second Car-Free Day, approximately 200,000 Bogotan@s were using the first lines of the then month-old Transmilenio (see http://www.transmilenio.gov.co/Transmilenio.htm). On Car-Free Day 2001 that number more than tripled, giving Bogotan@s the opportunity to give Transmilenio a shot and the numbers only increased from there after.

2002

Last year, was yet another success, despite the rain. There was no need to close off lanes because most of Bogotá's bike paths had been completed. The problem last year was the overwhelming number of taxis. 2002's Car-Free Day in Bogotá was also the site of the United Nation's first Practicum on its Car-Free Day series (read about it here) You can also take a look at the El Tiempo article on Car-Free Day - 2002 (in Spanish).

2003

Just as in the past Car-Free Days, noise and air pollution were greatly reduced. The previous year's taxi problem was solved by maintaining the two-year old "pico y placa" for taxis. The change in air was most notable on the wider avenues and it was as if the Netherlands had been plopped down on the more and more transited bike paths. Despite the mostly symbolic significance of Car-Free Day, the Mayor's goal of promoting the bike paths was solidly reached. The aim is not to remove private cars from the streets all together, rather to improve the quality of life through alternative forms of transportation. Along with the overwhelming favor of the yearly Car-Free Day, the question regarding gradually longer private car restriction was passed. Bogotá is exemplary in heading towards sustainable urban transport. (photos of Car-Free Day coming soon)