Almaty called to give up cars on September 22

Almaty residents are called to take part in the Car-Free Day global campaign to be held on September 22, Tengrinews.kz reports citing the PR-service of Almaty City Sustainable Transport project of the Global Environment Facility of the UN Development Program(GEF/UNDP). The annual campaign will be participated by tens of the cities around the world. On this day the citizens give up their cars and use public transport or bikes. The first Car-Free Days were held in the beginning of 1970s. The campaigns are also held in the former soviet cities of Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, Minsk, Kiev and Dushanbe. Velo-Almaty club initiated Almaty's participation in this event in 2009. “The excessive amounts of cars in Almaty effect not only the transport situation in the city, but also its ecology. Each of us has to start doing something to change the situation. By giving up our cars on this day we show our care for our city,” GEF/UNDP project manager Yelena Yerzakovich noted. According to the organization, transport emissions of greenhouse gases is estimated at 1.8 million tons of CO2 equivalent a year in Almaty. Around 80 percent of air pollution falls on cars.