“Life is too short to be sitting in traffic jams,” is the slogan of Costa Rica’s Car-Free Day event which is part of World Car Free Day celebrated every September 22 in a growing number of cities and countries throughout the world.

Costa Rican event organizers encourage those who will participate by leaving their car in the garage for the day on Friday to use the hashtag #RetoSinCarro, which means car-free challenge.

The multifold aims of the celebration include reducing fossil fuel consumption, providing commuters and others with a new feel for their surroundings, emphasizing the possibilities and advantages of other modes of transportation, among others.

“Changing our way of seeing the city and moving through it is up to us all if we want our quality of life to improve by reclaiming urban mobility, reducing traffic, improving the environment, and creating a safe and pleasant city,” explain event organizers on their Facebook page.

Only those who walk the streets and ride the trains and buses can appreciate the improvements needed to make these modes of transportation more accessible and enjoyable, and this day is the perfect opportunity to experience a new way of moving about a familiar environment.

Organizers hope that those who can and do join in car-free day will place greater value on “more efficient and sustainable means of transportation,” and perhaps go car-free on a regular basis.

“The purpose of the World Without Car Day is to encourage – through collective participation – the use of alternative means of transport besides a car to go to work, study, have fun, or do errands … and presents us with an opportunity to evaluate our infrastructure, public transportation systems and the conditions to travel, by different means of transport, in our city,” details the Costa Rica Car-Free Day Facebook page.

 

Will you join the car-free challenge this Friday, September 22?