Bogota Celebrates Pedestrian Day

Bogota, Colombia celebrates “Pedestrian Day” once every year. According to Smart Cities Drive, “the city closes its streets to cars so that people can both ride in safety and also participate in a symbolic event centered on public health and community building.”

Despacio, along with Local Actions team led by Maryfely Lincon, participated in the special day with activities that allowed people to walk through a simple obstacle course with a reverse periscope to give them the perspective of walking through the eyes of children and disabled road users. This highlights the need to develop road infrastructure that addresses the needs of vulnerable road users, especially when it comes to walking.

They also passed along flyers that raised road safety awareness and invited road users to contemplate the importance of safer roads and sustainable modes of transport.

"All people have the right to walk safely through the city. What do you commit to so that our city is a safer place for pedestrians? During the year 2022 in Bogota, more than 536 people lost their lives due to road accidents.”

Within the framework of the celebration of District Pedestrian Day and in alliance with the Secretariat Mobility Maryfely and her team carried out a three-station circuit that had the objective of promoting awareness and education among citizens in matters of road safety, active mobility on foot and the specific needs of the various pedestrians in Bogotá. The Circuit Stations are as follows;

Station 1 - Change of Perspective: In this station, we invited participants to take a tour of overcoming a series of obstacles while using the reverse periscope. This allowed people to experience what it is like to walk in the city from the perspective of children and people of short stature, helping them better understand their needs and challenges when moving through the city.

Station 2 - Road Safety "Golosa": In this station, participants were challenged to play a special version of "golosa" that included questions related to road safety, walkability, and active mobility in Bogotá.

Station 3 - Creativity on the Road: In this last station, we invite people to express their creativity by painting and writing phrases on textile as a complement to the phrase "On the roads of Bogotá I commit myself to..." At the end of the circuit, participants were given a postcard and other prizes.