Bet on clean air and eco-transport: Minsk summed up the results of the Mobility Week

The annual environmental campaign “Mobility Week” and the international action “Day without a car” ended in Minsk with a bicycle ride on September 22, the correspondent of the Minsk-Novosti agency reports.

Autumn rain did not prevent the participants of the race by personal example to prove that environmentally friendly transport is becoming a real alternative to cars with internal combustion engines. The tradition of such eco-initiatives originates in Belarus since 2008.

During the week, thematic events and flash mobs were held in the capital, and the final bike ride brought together representatives of relevant departments, city services and enthusiastic Minsk residents. In total, more than a hundred participants.

Effects of systemic measures

Thanks to the systematic development of the “green” movement, urban ecology can be systematically improved, said Dmitry Reutsky, Assistant to the President of the Republic of Belarus – Inspector for the City of Minsk, who participated in the bike ride:

- The volume of harmful emissions into the atmosphere of the capital is annually reduced by an average of 20%. Over the past five years, the share of citizens choosing electric transport has increased from 40% to 60%. There are already 70,000 electric cars registered in the country, with half of them plying the streets of Minsk. The network of equipped bike paths in the city reached 360 kilometers. Of these, more than 320 kilometers are trunk and walking tracks.

New urban trend

The growth of bicycle parking at universities, offices and production facilities confirms that two-wheeled transport in Minsk has become an everyday choice. On weekends on the main bike path, according to the First Deputy Minister of Sports Alexander Dorokhovich, there is dense traffic: people of all ages go on the routes, and family races for 50-60 km become a familiar ritual.

- The main thing is movement, energy and health. No pharmacy or doctor can replace regular physical activity. Such actions are important not only for the sake of reducing emissions, but also for the sake of forming an active healthy society, Dorokhovich said.

Photo by Irina Malinovskaya