Events

Car-Free Vancouver Day

By adrian ⋅ June 15, 2008 ⋅  Email This Post ⋅  Print This Post ⋅ Post a comment

For anyone who missed it, today was Car-Free Vancouver Day. First organized by volunteers in and around the Commercial Drive area in 2005, this year’s event three years later has spread to multiple locations - Kitsilano, the West End, and Main Street. The concept is simple and true to the day’s name - during Car-Free Vancouver Day, the roads at these select locations shut down to cars and open up for block parties and street festivals.

Here in my hood of Kits, instead of closing down one dedicated section of a busy street, multiple blocks throughout the neighbourhood were shut down - or from the participants’ perspective opened up. The couple of block parties I passed through were mostly family affairs, great to bring the kids or your niece/nephew as the case may be.

At the other locations, each featured a variety of bands, street performers, and a whole range of activities from face painting to street hockey. No matter where you go, the vibe is all about open participation and reclaiming the streets to not only raise social awareness but to also raise the fun factor of cruising through the city. According to some event organizers, the big goal is to one day have the whole city shut down to car traffic, and with gas creeping to $1.50 / litre, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the event spread in the years to come.

Tags: biking, Events, festivals