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Although officially World Carfree Day is Sept. 22, some cities hold events on the preceding or following weekend. Last year,25,000 people came out to enjoy carfree streets in Montreal, Canada, and measurements by the city showed a 90% reduction in nitrogen monoxide, a 100% reduction in carbon monoxide and 38% lower noise levels in the carfree area. Also in 2004, Copenhagen, Denmark, cut car use from 20,000 to just 3,000 in the town center. Educational street fairs were held from Oakland, California, to Zagreb, Croatia, and Jakarta, Indonesia. This year, one of the biggest events promises to be Berlin's "Kreisfahrt" on September 17, whose organizers expect 10,000 cyclists to converge on the city center.

Carfree Day celebrations, ranging from official street closures to carnivals organized by community groups, will be held on Sept. 22 in more than 1,500 cities in 40 countries. In addition, more than 600 cities in Europe and beyond have signed a charter to participate in European Mobility Week, an initiative by the European Commission which requires that participating cities extend Carfree Day activities to an entire week and implement practical measures to restrict car use or promote alternative modes of transport.

Public awareness of the problems with car dependence is spreading rapidly. Cars are responsible for 40 percent of air pollution that contributes to climate change, the obliteration of natural habitats, stress and social isolation in urban areas, and a staggering toll in human suffering and traffic-related deaths. Cars kill more than 3,000 people every day, far more per passenger than any other form of transportation. As a result, cities in Europe and Latin America are urgently moving away from dependence on cars. However, most North American cities remain dominated by the private automobile with a third of all urban land on the continent devoted to roads and parking lots.

Carfree days have been celebrated sporadically for decades, but in 2000 World Carfree Network put out an open invitation for groups to join the first World Carfree Day. This celebration of ecological mobility and livable cities held on September 22 is one of the most interactive methods of combating car-dependence. Beyond a primarily-rhetorical Earth Day, World Carfree Day tackles our biggest environmental problems head on with widespread public participation and, in the case of the European Commission-sponsored Mobility Week, specific actions by municipal authorities to improve sustainable transport.

World Carfree Network is assisting grassroots groups around the world with Carfree Day activities, ranging from direct actions (painting desperately needed, if unofficial, bike lanes; bouncing parked cars off of sidewalks; guerilla gardening in urban areas; providing free bicycle rickshaw taxi services; building memorials to those killed by cars) to family orriented fun (community bike rides, carfree fairs, humorous street theater and potluck breakfasts in the middle of the road).

Many cities will be holding events on the actual date, September 22, while others have chosen to hold their main event on the preceding or following weekend. Last year, street closures in Montreal, Canada, were especially popular - 25,000 people came out to enjoy carfree streets, and measurements by the city showed a 90% reduction in nitrogen monoxide, a 100% reduction in carbon monoxide and 38% lower noise levels in the carfree area. Also last year, Copenhagen, Denmark, cut car use from 20,000 to just 3,000 in the town center. Educational street fairs were held from Oakland, California, to Zagreb, Croatia, and Jakarta, Indonesia. This year, one of the biggest events promises to be Berlin's "Kreisfahrt" on September 17, whose organizers expect 10,000 cyclists to converge on the city center.

Carfree Day celebrations will be held in more than 1,500 cities in 40 countries, with events ranging from official, city-sponsored street closures to grassroots celebrations organized by community groups. Many events are organized by members of World Carfree Network, many are organized independently. In addition, more than 600 cities not just in Europe have signed a charter to participate in European Mobility Week, a separate effort by the European Commission which requires extending Carfree Day activities to an entire week and implementing practical measures to restrict car use or promote alternative modes of transport. The idea of carfree cities is spreading.