If one sees a mob of bikers riding through Claremont, they can assume that those are the CicLAvia bikers. CicLAvia is a non-profit event that creates an opprotunity for more active transportation and promotes healthy habits by having bikers from many cities ride on car-free streets. According to their website, the organization temporarily closes streets from cars and traffic and opens them up to pedestrians of LA or in the area to use as a public park. Free for everyone, CicLAvia connects communities to each other across an expansive city, creating a safe place to bike, walk, skate, and do whatever through the streets of Los Angeles. Luckily, CicLAvia will be expanding and will connect to the cities of San Dimas, La Verne, Pomona and Claremont this year in the Spring. The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 22, 2018, on Earth Day. The successful effects of this program is seen through the expansion and impacts.
CicLAvia has expanded throughout America and has been beneficial for the environment. The organization has been opening streets across LA county since 2010. According to the organizers of CicLAvia, they have crossed over 140 miles from The San Fernando Valley to the Southeast Cities and many streets in LA., and over 1 million people have experienced CicLAvia since the start of the program. The communities that this organization has spread to has five times more people using its current park space during event day than they are using all of the other parks in LA combined. This event has also impacted both local and regional policies related to pedestrians and bikes. Because of the opening of new temporary streets where there are no cars and pedestrians are free to walk, many policies have adopted their message.
The event prompts people to go outside and experience nature. One of the main goals of CicLAvia is to give people the chance to learn about the neighborhoods they go through, while in a car they would not be able to learn about their community.
Luckily, CicLAvia will be expanding their organization to Claremont and other nearby cities in April, 2018. Soon many streets in Claremont will be temporarily closed down to cars and vehicles to allow pedestrians and bikers to ride freely. Many citizens are excited for these events and are proud of what the outcome will be.
Many members of these communities say that the purpose and outcomes of CicLAvia are very important to streets and has been a successful expansion. It connects new open roads and people from various communities to create and impact a world that will allow people to roam the streets freely without cars, traffic, or pollution. Once the event comes to Claremont, our roads will open up as well and we will be able to temporarily have car-free streets.