Car-free in Long Island? Town officials and organizers of a push to reduce car usage on the island hope this week will show you it’s easier than you think.
“One of the best parts about living here is having so many options for travel and transport, and Car Free Day Long Island is a great reason to use them,” North Hempstead Supervisor Jennifer DeSena said. “In just one week, we can significantly reduce carbon emissions…and help make our town healthier.”
The event, organized by the non-profit Car Free Long Island and co-sponsored by the MTA, runs from Tuesday, Sept. 16, to Tuesday, Sept. 22, offering residents a week’s worth of days to choose to be car-free on.
DeSena suggested that residents use the LIRR, NICE bus system, bikes, walking or carpooling as alternatives to single-occupancy vehicles this week.
“The hope is that once you try one of these options, you enjoy it, you find that it’s practical and you keep doing it,” DeSena said. “Hopefully, people just think about it. ‘Can I walk? Can I get one more car off the road?”
Residents can pledge to be car-free at https://carfreedayli.com/pledge/, where they can share what alternative mode of transportation they plan to use and how many miles they otherwise would have travelled in a car.
Taking the pledge automatically enters residents into a lottery for free bikes and discounted public transit fares.
Last year, almost 4000 Long Island residents ditched their cars for the day, avoiding roughly 60,000 miles driven and 78 tons of carbon dioxide emissions, according to Car Free Long Island.
In 2022, North Hempstead employees earned the gold award for the highest number of pledges of any town on Long Island. DeSena said the town encourages more residents to participate this year to make an even larger impact.
She said she hoped the event would inspire the next generation to continue climate-conscious efforts into the future and show people they could make a difference by joining together.
“A lot of people don’t think that they can make a dent in the climate [crisis] by themselves, so it’s always good to be joining together to accomplish something, to make a difference,” DeSena said. “If we all join together, we will make a difference.”
