Oakland, California - At 10 a.M. another "Ciclavia" session began. Oaklavia, as it is called in this instance, is a special metropolitan area in which a formerly car-dominated downtown district is temporarily transformed into blocks of wide open space where even toddlers play safely in the middle of the street. Ciclavias have occurred in other cities such as New York and elsewhere. this is one of the first to happen in Oakland.
My wife and I have lived our whole lives in Oakland but we've never experienced it without cars in the streets, so we decided to check it out.
The car-less spaces weren't quite contiguous but the police and the event volunteers ensured that cyclists and pedestrians didn't wait long, or at all, to move between each car-less segment.
To be honest, even with police blocking oncoming traffic, it was still tough to relax in the middle of the street. seeing a mother and child in the roadway was truly surreal. no fear of imminent death in these two: just joy at being out on a Sunday in a wide-open space.
Once the lack of car noise and the abundance of space set in, it truly was liberating and incredibly stimulating. Events like this and cycling in general flood you with so much more detail about your surroundings than you would normally get. Being in a steel and glass enclosure moving at high velocity (aka a car) robs you of so many parts of a place.
The smells of all the food alone made the trip worthwhile: like those from an outdoor caf
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I have heard this same argument for so many years, I can't count them. If you met in the intersection, then BOTH of you were running a red light. In that situation, the car turning left still has the responsibility of yielding to oncoming traffic.
This "I turned under the yellow light" argument has never worked and never will. I wonder how long it will take people to learn this?