Bogotá's Traffic Chaos

What's this scene of commuters piling into a truck got to do with bicycling? Plenty!
Today, the city's commercial bus drivers went on strike. That's bad, because so many people depend on the buses here. But the drivers were striking against the city's policies designed to organize and clean up the city's dirty, chaotic and inefficient private buses.
That's fundamental for cyclists, because the city's chaos can make cycling dangerous and unpleasant, not to mention the damage from the pollution belched by buses like these below. Of course, many private vehicles also pollute unjustifiably, especially those new Chinese trucks. But, in Bogotá, buses still generate the lion's share of vehicle pollution, and until now many are obviously flouting the law - to the harm of all of us. The bus owners' strike shows that finally the city is really cracking down - or trying to.
In the end, the strike lasted four days, until the city agreed to give the bus companies a bigger slice of the income from the planned Integrated Transit System. With that system, some 8,000 older buses are supposed to be junked and replaced with 2,000 larger, cleaner and more-efficient buses. Let's all cross our fingers!

Ecoaire is a clean air organization created by, of all people, Ecopetrol, Colombia's state oil company.
This page is supposed to provide Bogotá's daily air quality, but I can't get it to work.
Here's my take on Bogotá transit on my other blog.
This blog is written by Mike Ceaser, of Bogota Bike Tours and Rentals

Bogotá's Central Cemetery: Bicycles Not Welcome Here!

Here's Jorge, who visits his relative's grave every Monday, and has to lock his bike outside the gate.

Bogotá's Central Cemetery is a city unto itself, with thousands of graves, including those of ex-presidents, mayors and other luminaries. In this highly-Catholic nation, many people visit their relatives' gravesites regularly. But don't think about coming here on a bicycle - because you won't find a place to park. The cemetery's security guards explained to me that there isn't enough room - but there IS plenty of room, and there's even room enough for a parking lot for CARS! It's yet another example of the mindset which takes automobile parking for granted but considers bicycle parking a luxury - even in a polluted, car-choked city like Bogotá. I contacted the city department in charge of the cemeteries, and learned that they are required by law to provide bicycle parking - a law they've successfully ignored. But the guy in charge did send a letter to the contractor managing the cemeteries asking them to install bike racks.

We'll see what happens.

This blog is written by Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours

 

Bogotá's Car-Free Day

Car-Free Day

Feb. 4 was Bogotá's annual Car-Free Day, a decade-old tradition. It's one of the few cities to have such an event. Car-Free Day's goal is primarily to demonstrate to auto-addicts that they CAN get to work or school by means other than the private automobile (or taxis, which abounded). Yesterday, congestion dropped dramatically and carbon monoxide 43 percent, but the many old buses meant that pollution continued.

Unfortunately, since car-free day is only one day, many car owners simply postpone things until the day after, producing more congestion on Feb. 5. The city should rather have such days weekly or monthly, so that it becomes a custom rather than an oddity. Bogotá's pico y placa law prohibits cars from circulating two days each week, according to the last digit on their license plates. However, the rule also promotes the purchasing of second, often used, cars. The best solution by far would be a London-style congestion tax.

This blog is written by Mike Ceaser, of Bogota Bike Tours

Happy Birthday Ciclovia?

So, the other week, Bogotá's famous Ciclovía celebrated its 35th birthday the other day. This Bogotá institution began with a few cyclists riding a several-block-long circuit along Seventh Ave., and has expanded into a major source of pride and recreation for millions of Bogotanos, and has been imitated (but not equalled) in other city, with names such as Via Verde and Sunday (or Summer) Streets. 

Unfortunately, recent mayors have not given Bogotá's Ciclovia the importance and priority that it deserves and needs to continue playing such an important role for the health and recreation of millions of Bogotanos. 

Last year, without public consultation, the city government suspended La Ciclovia along one of its major avenues, 26th St., because of work for expansion of the city's Transmilenio express bus system. To many of us, it seems that La Ciclovia could have continued functioning on 26th St. 

Now, many of us are worried that the same story will be repeated on 7th Ave., which is La Ciclovía's most popular, important and visible section. ÇWithout either Seventh Ave. or 26th St., La Ciclovia will be barely a shadow of its full self, millions of people will lose access to their recreation and hundreds of people who sell foods or services along the route will lose their incomes. 

The other day, I met with officials of the District's Institute of Recreation and Sport (IDRD), to talk about this and other issues. unfortunately, I left feeling less confident than ever in La Ciclovia's future. Will the Ciclovia be given an alternative, parallel route during construction on Seventh Ave.? Well, the officials told me, they've asked for one, but the decision is not up to them. I saw no sign that they had taken any sort of real stand to defend this institution which benefits so many people in Bogota. Similarly, I haven't seen mobilization on the part of the hundreds of informal vendors who depend on the Seventh Ave. Ciclovia for an important part of their income. Unfortunately, this sort of resignation in the face of the 'inevitable' and the decisions of authorities seems to be characteristic of Colombian society. 

Similarly, when I asked the officials about dealing with the growing problem of motor-powered bicycles producing noise and pollution on La Ciclovia, they basically shrugged their shoulders and said they had no legal way of excluding these machines. Are SUVs next?

Let's just hope that the Ciclovia survives to see more 'Happy Birthdays.'

But just don't call it a Ciclovia!

Dec. 10 was Bogotá's famous 'Ciclovia Nocturna,' or Nocturnal Ciclovía. Besides being at night, there was another difference between it and the normal Sunday/holiday Ciclovías - Seventh Ave. was so crowded that you could hardly walk, much less cycle, on it! Bogotá's world-famous Ciclovia is a wonderful institution. And so is this evening, when major avenues are taken from cars and given to the people. But this once-a-year event should better be called a pede-via or caminatavia.

This blog is written by Mike Ceaser, of Bogota Bike Tours

Bicycles Near the Seat of Power

This group of bikes on the steps of Colombia's Congress invites reflection on why it is so seldom that bicycles and cyclists ever get near the seat of power, either physically or politically. 

These bikes also illustrate something else - bicycles' healing power. They are being ridden by a group of soldiers injured by land mines placed by guerrilla groups - part of the tragedy of Colombia's destructive war. Many have lost legs or feet, but they can still use bicycles. 

Tragically, bicycles have also been used as weapons in Colombia's war - there have been several cases of bicycle bombs.

This blog is written by Mike Ceaser, of Bogota Bike Tours and Rentals

Bringing Curry to Colombia by Bike!

In 1972, Arun Pal left Calcutta for Munich on a bicycle and ended up in Bogotá in 2009 running an Indian food restaurant. Read his whole story in The City Paper.

Does he still ride a bicycle? The world wants to know!

This blog is written by Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours and Rentals.