Lima introduced one day a month where all motorized transport is banned from the historic city center of Lima, opening and cleaning up the streets for pedestrians.
For 12 hours on the last Sunday of every month, the Peruvian capital city has created a ban for vehicles in the old and central district. This road closure promotes more sustainable transport alternatives and is also used as a chance to create artistic, educational, and gastronomic activities for the city’s citizens and tourists. It also serves as respite for the air pollution caused by traffic during the remainder of the month.
To further encourage walking and cycling in the city, Lima offers free cycling workshops and has created additional cycle routes. And to determine the difference created by the scheme, the city regularly measures air particulates as well as noise levels. Particulate levels more than halved during one of the car-free days and noise levels fell from 78 to 59 decibels, creating a cleaner, calmer, and healthier environment for all to enjoy.
33 ug per cubic meter of particulate emissions have been reduced during a Sunday without cars
The challenge
Governments are often wary of creating legislation that threatens fossil fuel-based industries, but when communities demand more sustainable forms of transport, as in Loja, it gives local governments the green light to push more environmentally progressive policies.
Co-benefits
Environmental Preventing cars from entering the city center not only reduces air and noise pollution, but also cuts greenhouse gas emissions from cars.
Social Taking cars off the road allows more space for socially inclusive activities. The city estimates that the free cycling workshops and entertainment have benefited more than 7,000 people.
Health Lima is taking its first small step in reducing air pollution, showing what sort of environment is possible when cars are absent and more people cycle.
About Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. With a population of more than 10 million, Lima is the most populous metropolitan area of Peru and the third-largest city in the Americas (as defined by “city proper”), behind São Paulo and Mexico City. It became the capital and most important city in the Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru. Around one-third of the national population lives in the metropolitan area. Lima is home to one of the oldest higher-learning institutions in the New World. The National University of San Marcos, founded on May 12, 1551 during the Spanish colonial regime, is the oldest continuously functioning university in the Americas.
