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Yikes!
Sustainable citizenry in action

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The Commons, Paris. 19 May 2001.

What's Wrong with "Car Free Day"?
An agonized reflection on a problem name

Great things are done when men and mountains meet;
This is not done by jostling in the street.
-- "Gnomic Verses", W. Blake

Here at The Commons we have over the years gone through quite a range of names for our various 'car free' or 'car-lite' action programs. Back in 1988 we thought "Cities without Cars?" was a good idea and tried that for a while, rather quickly getting rid of the punctuation in the title as a worse than useless appendage. Then for a while it was "car free cities", and then rather quickly that morphed into "ACCESS", and later "@ccess", etc. Part of this general word fussiness was a continuing dissatisfaction with the negative implications of phrases containing things like 'without cars' or car free'. Our finding that this negative orientation created rather more heat than light when it came to both discussion and gaining the needed broad base of public support. And now, years later we are still looking. This year it is Earth Car Free Day. But next year?

The following has been adapted and extended from a listing from an Internet list on alternative names for events that tried to clear urban streets of polluting machines that was originally brainstormed by our friends at the International Bicycle Fund. You may find what you are looking for there. Or you may have a better idea yet for us.

2-Stroke Vehicle Free Day
21st Century Transport Day
365 Car Free Days Year
A Day To Breath
A Day Without Congestion
Air and Noise Pollution Free Day
Alternate Transport Day
Alternative Traffic Day
Better Transport With Less Traffic
Beyond Barriers
Bike to Work Day, Week, Month...
Bird Singing Day

I have another good name for you!
Breath Easy Day, Breath-Free Day
Car Conscious Day
CarFree Day
Car Free Sundays
Car Off Day
Car Rest Day ("Your car also deserves a rest")
City Revival Day
Clean Air Day
Clean Monday (If it happens to be Monday - Or Green Tuesday / Clean Tuesday if it happens to be Tuesday, etc.)
Clean Energy, Clean Motion Day, Clean Transport Day, Clean Travel Day
Community Transport Day
Commuter Challenge
Congestion Relief Day
Day By Foot
Don't Choke Day
Drive-Less Day
Earth Car Free Day
Enhanced Transport Day
Enjoy Moving
Enjoyable Transport Day
Entertaining Transport Day
Face Freedom Day
Fair Mobility Day
Feet First Day
Firefly Brigade
Flower Smelling Day
Free Moving Day
Free One's Selves From Cars
Free Ride Day
Free The Environment From Its Pollutants
Friendly Transport Day
Funny Transport Day
Future Displacement
Future Moving
Future Transport Day
Go! Clean Day, Go! Green Day
Green Monday, Green Transport Day, Greener Transport Day, Green Travel Day
Harmless Transport Day
Healthy And Happy Day
Healthy Transport Day
Human Powered Day, Human Transport Day
Independence Day
Innovative Transport Day
In Town without My Car
Leave Your Car Day, Leave Your Car to Day, Leave Your Car for the Day,
Less Traffic Day
Liveable Transport Day
Lose it and Move it
Neighbourhood Day
No Gas Day, No Smog Day, No Pollute Commute Day
People's Transport Day
Operation Ring-Ring (common in Europe)
Quiet Transport (Mobility?) Day
Really Enjoy Moving
Restful (Mobility) Transport Day
Ride & Walk Day
Road Rage Elimination Day
See Your City Day
Shed Your Car Day
Sleeping Car Day
Sleeping Restful (Mobility) Transport Day
Smart Car Day
Strive Not To Drive Day
Sustainable Transport Day
Traffic Free Day, Traffic Peace Day, Traffic Reduction Day, Traffic Silence Day
Transportation Of The People, For The People, By The People
Travel Clean Day, Travel Green Day
Travel To Work Awareness Day
True Transportation Enjoyment
True Transportation Joy
UnCar Day
Unclog The Arteries Day
Urban Community Day
Walk & Ride Day
Walk to School Day
Walking and Bicycling Makes (You) Environment Friendly Day
World Car-Free Day

And finally, from Murray Matson in Australia, the ever so restrained suggestion, "Death to the Car Day". (That should be an easy one to sell.)

Reader Notes

All pieces posted here are forwarded for the purposes of education and research under the fair play provisions of copyright law. All non-copyright materials may be used freely for non-commercial purposes, unless otherwise indicated. We ask only that you provide the usual full and proper acknowledgement of your source. If you have a doubt, consult The Commons here.

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