Car-Free Day. Belarus for clean air!

Annually, on September 22, Belarus celebrates an environmental campaign – the Car-Free Day. Every year, this campaign is dedicated to themes related to raising public awareness of the problems of excessive car traffic, and involves holding events, surveys, bike parades, conferences, and activities with the participation of various age groups of the population, aimed at promoting public urban passenger transport, non-motorized vehicles, walking, a healthy lifestyle, and environmental preservation.

Car-Free Day is not only needed to express concern about the urban environment or the problems of urban infrastructure. This day gives us an opportunity to look at our daily routine differently. A car, indispensable for long trips, may turn out to be not so necessary for a simple trip to the store or to get to work.

Restrictions for motorists have been introduced ever since the personal car became a widespread phenomenon. It was not limited to mere calls – for example, in the late thirties, laws were introduced throughout Europe directly prohibiting the use of personal cars. Of course, no one thought about ecology then. On the eve of the world war, the armies of all countries were in dire need of fuel.

It is road transport that is one of the main sources of urban air pollution. Up to 99 percent of all aerosols or harmful gases in the air are products of internal combustion engines.

The Miory District Inspectorate of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection urges you to join a planetary-scale holiday and "cultivate" your regular car use, which is very simple to do. The best way to celebrate World Car-Free Day is simply not to use your car. If you need to go somewhere, walk or ride a bicycle. If you have a skateboard or an electric scooter, use it. Or simply use public transport.

Car-Free Day is organized differently in various cities around the world, but with a common goal – to reduce the number of cars on the streets. The benefit for society as a whole is a day without traffic jams, help for the environment, and a decrease in fuel demand.

Chief Specialist of the Inspection A.E. Voevodov