The last week in October was a very busy week for Philly311. Besides our normal requests, there was an influx of questions regarding road closures and general info for the 2nd Philly Free Streets, the City initiative where pedestrians take over 7-mile roundtrip route of car-free streets in the heart of Philadelphia! Now you remember! Philly Free Streets offers residents a unique way to interact with their city. It’s easy to fall in love with the vision of pedestrian powered roadways but there’s so much more to it than that. Here are 5 unsuspecting things we loved about the 2nd Philly Free Streets.
The Culture
Philadelphia can change a lot in 3.5 miles. Starting in the Historic District at 3rd and Chestnut Streets, you can see the slow transformation from the tall, repurposed factories in Old City to the row homes and tight-knit communities of Northern Liberties and Fairhill. From the multitude of languages that filled the air to the sweeping crowds of Pokémon GO players, there was much diversity to take in and appreciate.
The Volunteers and City Employees
The streets were filled with hundreds of happy volunteers including John Waites, who was more than eager to help answer any questions I had. John works in Street Enforcement for the Philadelphia Streets Department and was loud, energetic, enthusiastic, and most importantly, pleasant. When asked what he likes about Philly Free Streets he replied, “I love when we come together and unite as one for something special like this.”
The Swag
Nothing gets one more excited than hearing “free t-shirt.” It can motivate people to action with little risk and huge reward. Everywhere I turned on the course; there were dozens of opportunities to leave with free swag. Thank you, Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems for the commemorative t-shirt!
The Pooches
My weekends are generally planned around where I can go with an uneven dog to human ratio; the more dogs, the better and they were impossible to miss at Philly Free Streets. All sizes. All shapes. All cuddly!
The STEPS
Like so many of you, I am glued to a desk from 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Monday to Friday. This somewhat hinders me from trying to be “active” and get my ideal “10,000 steps” a day but on Saturday, I clocked almost 18,000 steps before noon! Woohoo! I can only imagine the mileage Mayor Kenney piled up on his power walk up and down the entire length of the course.
All in all, Philly Free Streets delivers a unique experience for Philadelphians, especially for those of us that desired a reprise or missed the 2015 Papal visit. There was no need to sign up, no requirements necessary, just a chance for Philadelphians of all ages, races, and backgrounds to come see the sights and enjoy the diverse landscape that makes up this great city. The only thing that could possibly be better… a different and longer route to conquer next spring.
