Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Getting around Mexico City on 2 wheels gets easier

Mayor Marcelo Ebrard cycles once to work once a month

Mayor Ebrard's city government has committed to build 186 miles (300 kilometers) of bike paths, or ciclovĂ­as, by 2012. This in a city where 57% of the city's carbon dioxide emissions come from vehicle transportation, according to Mexico's National Autonomous University (source: Treehugger).

The plan is modeled on Bogota, Columbia's CiclovĂ­a and a similar plan in Copenhagen, Denmark, where planners want half of the commuter population to get to school or work on bike by 2015.

How does your city and civic leaders compare? Is your Urban transportation planning division progressive enough?