The city of Clearwater Florida has planned a “Sunday Ciclovia” event for Sunday, April 26.
Sunday Ciclovía, which takes its name from the Spanish word for “bike path,” is now one of the city’s annual Fun ‘n Sun Festival events. From 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., two miles of Cleveland Street from Clearwater Harbor to Gulf-to-Bay-Boulevard in the East Gateway District will be closed to motorized traffic and open for people.
Participants of any age and skill level can bike, stroll, skate, or take part in open-air fitness, sports and dance classes that will be offered on the street. Representatives from bike shops, bike clubs and other organizations promoting recreation and healthy living will line the street. Restaurants and retailers, many offering ethnic specialties, will be open for business.
Major sponsors include the Downtown Development Board, PostcardMania, Tampa BayCycle, Achieva Credit Union, Dunkin’ Donuts/Baskin Robbins, Tampa Bay Informer, Costco and Café Supreme.
Clearwater is following the lead of Bogotá, Colombia, where the first Ciclovía was initiated in 1976. Since then, cities around the globe such as London, Paris, Mexico City, Guadalajara, New York, Miami, Portland, El Paso and San Francisco have hosted their own car-free events—some holding them weekly.