Filed under: bicycle, biking, cycling, eco-friendly, fitness
Sunday Cycling in Mexico City
At first glance, traffic-clogged Mexico City may not seem like the best place to explore on two wheels, but check out the downtown area on a Sunday morning and you might be surprised at what you find. Since 2007 the city has been working to make Mexico City’s streets more bicycle-friendly through a variety of initiatives. Along with plans to construct hundreds of miles of new bike lanes, there’s the popular ecobici program and the weekly Muévete en Bici program that takes place every Sunday when streets throughout the historic center are closed to traffic to accommodate the city’s cyclists.
In a city that’s not yet known for having much of a cycling culture, a very small percentage of residents routinely get around by bicycle. All of that changes on Sunday mornings when the Paseo de la Reforma – Mexico City’s main thoroughfare linking the Zócalo (map) with Chapultepec Park (map) - and other streets throughout the historic downtown area are closed to traffic and taken over by cyclists. It’s estimated that upwards of 10,000 bikers take to the streets between 8am and 2pm on a typical Sunday morning and several times that number participate on the last Sunday of every month when the traffic-free route is expanded to form a 20-mile circuit called the Cicloton. But it’s not just cyclists that show up for the weekly event, joining them are runners, rollerbladers, skateboarders, children on push toys and parents with strollers.
Along the route you’ll find a string of roadside tent stations offering up a variety of services from bike repairs to medical services, water refills and exercise classes. If you don’t have a bicycle of your own your it’s possible to borrow or rent one at several of the bike rental kiosks located along the Paseo de la Reforma.
Event Details:
Cambia de Carril y Muevete en Bici
Sunday mornings 8am-2pm
More Info and the 2011 Calendar
