New Brunswick Ciclovia Opens Streets to Everything But Cars

The New Brunswick fall Ciclovia was canceled due to the weather forecast.

The New Brunswick Ciclovia typically runs three or four times per year. This year, the spring Ciclovia was held on April 19 and the summer Ciclovia was held on June 14. The fall Ciclovia was scheduled for Oct. 4.

During the New Brunswick Ciclovia, the streets temporarily become car-free for five hours. It allows residents to run, jog, ride bikes and skate along the route and explore the city streets. The New Brunswick Ciclovia was launched in 2013 with a mission of promoting active living through open and car-free streets.

“(It) gets people exercising and they don’t even know they are doing it. So enjoying time with the bike, running, walking and seeing kids in the scooter — this is wonderful because the kids even don’t know they are exercising,” said Yesenia Hernandez, the program coordinator from Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.

Although the New Brunswick fall Ciclovia was canceled, the 2016 Ciclovias are coming soon.

“It sounds great. I usually don’t have time to hit the gym. This event would be great for me to do some exercises,” said Allie Marcelliano, a student of Rutgers University.

Although she had not heard about the New Brunswick Ciclovia, she expressed her willingness to attend the event in the future.

The Fall Ciclovia route travels through College Avenue, George Street, Paterson Street, Bayard Street and Joyce Kilmer Avenue. It covers more than three miles of streets. The route was designed for participants to enjoy the downtown area and many of the city’s attractions, landmarks and parks. There is no beginning or end to the New Brunswick Ciclovia route. It is not a race. People can join in this event anywhere along the route.

“It’s worth doing and should be great to enjoy activities. It’s really good to get people to exercise and help people stay healthy,” said Fengxueyang Gao, a New Brunswick resident. “However, is it good for Rutgers students who want to travel through campuses during the Ciclovia?”

The New Brunswick Ciclovia is held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday or 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Cars can still cross the route at selected major streets at the direction of police and there are parking lots available on the Rutgers College Avenue Campus.

The New Brunswick Ciclovia is designed to achieve a variety of objectives simultaneously by increasing physical activity, strengthening community engagement, encouraging active transportation, reducing environmental impacts, promoting public spaces and resources, and supporting local businesses.

According to research on the first New Brunswick Ciclovia held on Oct. 6, 2013, the event increased the health and wellness of attendees on the day of the event.

“Nearly 42 percent of all respondents of the survey and 31.4 percent of New Brunswick residents discovered a store or restaurant in New Brunswick during the New Brunswick Ciclovia. This may also suggest that the Ciclovia encouraged or provided a reason for New Brunswick residents to travel outside the neighborhoods and become more familiar with the community as a whole,” according to the report.