Ride a bike in Mexico City

The Christian Science Monitor reports on the new bicycle friendliness of Mexico City.

How to help this sprawled-out city choked with more than 4 million vehicles and rampant air pollution? Ride a bike, says Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard.

New infrastructure, road closures, and bike-sharing programs are helping to promote the two-wheel answer to congestion and poor air quality. There’s the “Muevete en Bici,” which opens 8.7 miles of major avenues to only cyclists on Sundays. The city has also promised to build new bike parking and 186 miles of bike paths by 2012. There are bike racks in the Metro stations as well as bicycle-designated subway cars. Bike-sharing programs abound, the largest being the newly launched EcoBici (EcoBike) that has 1,100 bikes for use. It is the first of its kind in Latin America.

Read the full story: Mexico City makes way for bicycles

Photo by Alfredo Estrella / AFP