Globe Corner Blogs

The highlight of a recent trip to Colombia was the opportunity to participate in Bogotá’s “Ciclovia.” Every Sunday, year-round, the city of Bogotá closes off over 120 kilometers of streets to traffic from 7 am to 2 pm. And, in a city of seven million, well over a million turn out to bike, roller-blade, jog, dog walk, or just promenade in their Sunday finest on the blessedly car-free streets.

What a transformation for a city that a decade ago warranted a chapter in Robert Pelton’s “World’s Most Dangerous Places.” Citizens have reclaimed the streets and civic life; Ciclovia is a joyous manifestation of the pride, good humor, and optimism of Bogotá’s residents. There’s a spring in folks’ step here that was unexpected (at least for me) — a confidence that the future is going to be better than the past.

We were staying in Usaquén on the northern fringe of Bogotá and our host

kindly provided bikes for a Sunday morning in late January. The beginning (or end, depending on your point of view) of one of the major routes of Ciclovia starts in Usaquén and runs into the central district of Bogotá on Carrera Séptima. Although flatlanders who haven’t acclimated to the 8600 foot elevation may feel the effects of the high altitude, the north/south routes in the city are essentially flat and make for very pleasant biking.

From the moment we started, I was enthralled by the festive, holiday atmosphere of the thousands of folks out on the route. Families with kids on trainer wheels, runners with dogs, serious exercise gym rats, folks walking after church — all respecting each other’s space. Every few blocks, there would be another “refreshment” stop with multiple vendors with carts selling fresh juice, fruit, and other types of street food — all with an emphasis on healthy options. The city provides free bike repair stops every few miles in case you have a flat tire or other mishap.

Due to time constraints, we limited our experience to about a 12 mile round trip with plenty of stops to admire city architecture and the pageantry of Bogotá’s citizenry on a sunny, 60-degree January day. For a refugee from Boston’s winter, it was a mighty fine day.

There is a wonderful video, produced by a New York documentary film studio, about Ciclovia and Bogotá’s visionary urban planners that can be viewed at http://www.streetfilms.org/archives/ciclovia/. I guarantee you that within the first five minutes of experiencing Ciclovia, you will be asking yourself “Why don’t we do this in…Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, etc”.

Read more: Bike Tours, Bogotá, Ciclovia, Colombia, Travel, Usaquén


Pat

Trackback URI | Comments RSS