Open Streets Day more assorted and popular than ever
OBSERVATORY Main Road came alive with colour and activity and left no room for motorised transport as Open Streets Cape Town celebrated its fifth anniversary.
Yesterday the main road in Observatory, past Salt River and Woodstock through to Sir Lowry Road, was closed to traffic.
Instead of the usual hustle and bustle with hooting taxis, the road was used by artists, cyclists, skate boarders and families walking together peacefully. Pets also experienced the freedom of walking in a road normally filled with vehicles.
Open Streets Cape Town organiser, Marcela Guerrero Casas, said the programme returned to Observatory where it first launched five years ago.
“There is something magical when children can hang around in the streets like this,” she said.
Guerrero Casas said yesterday’s event was well attended. “This shows that it is possible to transform any road. This provides people time to connect and talk about difficult things such as the water crisis – we had a talk on it earlier,” she said.
Mark Louw, who attended the event as a sad clown from 1874, said he enjoyed giving people funny handshakes. Louw is a regular at the Open Streets event and said he has met some good people along the way.
Andrew Selondo, a cyclist, said he participated in the Bike Bus Ride from Muizenberg to Observatory. “It’s been beyond my expectations. I love volunteering here, it’s quite fun,” he said.