The above video link from StreetFilms displays what can happen when a city realizes that streets are for living, not just for moving automobiles.
Modeled after Bogota, Columbia’s Ciclovia, New York City’s Summer Streets program is closing 7 miles of major thoroughfares for three separate Saturday’s during the month of August. The first event was held last Saturday and exceeded all expectations. I imagine NYC will take this from an experiment to a regular weekend event in a short amount of time. Congrats to all who mad Summer Streets such a success.
Here in Miami, where we can have summer streets all year long, the Bicycle Advisory Committee is working with the Mayor’s office and government officials to produce something similar. Stay tuned.
South Miami routinely closes Sunset to car traffic for assorted fairs and festivals. Coral Gables closes Miracle Mile to cars a couple times a year and Bayshore Dr in the Grove gets closed for the arts festival. Ocean Dr in South Beach closes to cars several times a year as well. Not much in the downtown area though (except for the marathon or the corporate run).
All great events and reason to close streets, but the intent for a ciclovia/summer streets type event is much different. I have never been on any of these streets while closed, but I doubt the intent is to promote bicycling, walking, running, aerobics classes, and general activity. They are specialized for art fairs and festivals, like the book fair in downtown Miami. Moreover, the segments you list are quite short. This type of program is more expansive in scope.
NYC has a great bicycle group Transportation Alternatives that have done amazing things for moving the city toward a more cyclist friendly environment. You can read about what they have done and what they have planned for the future at http://www.transalt.org/
I believe they are responsible for getting the summer streets in place. They have for the past few years gotten the roads through central park closed during the summer. They are what I hope Miami’s BAC could strive to be.
Having seen/participated in the success of the Ciclovias in Colombia, it’s just surprising that it took so long for a major city in the US to do the same.
Sundays in Bogota are a blast with thousands of cyclists out in mass.