Thousands of Philadelphians came out for Philly Free Streets on Saturday, September 24. It was an event in which the city opened up about 10 miles of its streets, from Front and South to West Fairmount Park, to people instead of cars.
The event went from 8am-1pm and brought out hundreds, if not thousands of people on bikes. The Bicycle Coalition was at Passyunk and South, hosting a Bike Rodeo for kids. Around 11:30, we led a ride from 2nd and South Streets to West Fairmount Park, where we joined people already engaged in a concert going on at Sweetbriar Fields.
The event marks a step forward for Philadelphia, and proves just how much people want to be able to get together and use their own streets, free of motor vehicle traffic.
Most media outlets considered the event a success, businesses reported an uptick in customers during the event. People were pretty happy. We are very excited for the next Open Streets event—and hope to see more streets open up to people.