Siena, Italy, 1998 This is the old listing and is no longer updated. The current listing of carfree places is maintained on Wikipedia. Introduction The system is somewhat arbitrary and not scientific. The basic idea was to identify major carfree urban areas. A single street does not meet the test unless it is of unusual extent (say 1 kilometer) or importance (a major street). It is no longer an objective to make this listing exhaustive. (It seems that there are simply too many carfree areas for this to be a realistic goal.) The carfree test has not been rigorously applied. Some areas with minimal, low-impact car usage have been included; these should be identified as such. Transit service was not directly considered. Some areas may have no transit service within the carfree area; others may have fairly (even irritatingly) high levels of bus traffic or other public transport. Wohen Ohne Auto maintains a listing in German. Schema The data is organized by region and country, using the following schema: Place (sorted continent and country) Size of carfree district in whatever measure is convenient - percentage, blocks, hectares, housing units, etc. Population of the carfree district Description of the character of the area: mixed use, resort, medieval, etc. Color-coding is used as follows: Venice Most or all of the city is essentially carfree. Kids can play in most streets. Siena Large area that is nearly carfree; pedestrians may still occasionally have to avoid cars. Parma Worthy of inclusion, but extent is limited or vehicles sometimes intrude appreciably.

The Listing Europe Many, even most, European cities of any size include at least a small carfree area, almost always in the old heart of the city. These are not mentioned in the list below unless they are in some respect unusual. Italy City Geographic Extent Population Character Venice Entire city except near the train station Estimated at 70,000 Medieval city, today highly focused on tourism; transport on foot or by water Siena Entire city Perhaps 30,000 Not entirely carfree but most streets have very little traffic Cinque Terre (5 towns on the Gulf of Genoa) Most or all of each town Probably a few thousand each Some towns are carfree, others highly car-moderated Florence Several streets near Piazza San Lorenzo ? Market area of the old city Rome Several streets west of the Vatican ? ? Parma Small area in the city center, probably 6-10 streets Unknown, probably a few thousand Probably some delivery trucks permitted during limited hours Orta San Giulio (reportedly) ? ? ? Naples Small carfree area at center ? Shopping area in downtown Milan Small area near cathedral ? Wide streets completely filled with pedestrians after work Ferrara The medieval center has carfree streets and is over all "car lite" ? Heavy bike use; lovely old town Perugia While the town suffers heavily from cars and traffic, some areas are so narrow that they are carfree ? Medieval hill town of great intrinsic beauty Assisi Much of the town is highly car-moderated ? Visitors must park at the foot of the hill; some reidents' cars are allowed in town Switzerland City Geographic Extent Population Character Zermatt Entire town Probably 20,000 or so Carfree Alpine resort with prototype "Utility Area" at the entrance; slow electric taxis and freight vehicles used, although these are sometimes driven too aggressively Bettmeralp Entire town ? Alpine resort Barunwald Entire town ? Alpine resort Riederalp Entire town ? Alpine resort Rigi Entire town ? Alpine resort Sass-Fee Entire town ? Alpine resort Stoos Entire town ? Alpine resort Wengen Entire town ? Alpine resort Zürich Large parts of the old town ? Carfree medieval urban core Geneva 10 streets 10,000 Carfree areas in the heart Basel Parts of the medieval town are carfree ? The city is heavily dependent on an excellent tram system and most of the center city is highly car-moderated if not carfree St. Gallen Old center ? Carfree Neuchatel Old center ? Carfree Appenzell Old center ? Carfree Gstaad Village center ? Carfree Rapperswil Medieval center ? Carfree center Brig Perhaps 10 blocks in downtown ? Old part of the city, mixed use Winterthur Historic center ? ? Lugano Most of the old quarter ? ? Mürren Entire town ? Alpine resort; one visitor thought that there was too much utility traffic at too high a speed to be truly carfree Germany City Geographic Extent Population Character Freiburg im Breisgau (Baden-Württemberg) Large carfree center City 200,000; Carfree areas perhaps 10,000? Medieval university town; a very small amount of car traffic is permitted on some streets; trams provide access Freiburg im Breisgau Vauban district 5,000 (when completed) New carfree district converted from a military base; car parking at edge Nürnberg 9 km of carfree streets ? ? Münich 7 km of carfree streets ? information Stuttgart 6.9 km of carfree streets ? ? Lindau Historic center ? ? Rothenburg ob der Tauber ? 13,000 ? Wittenberg (Gartenstadt Piesteritz) ? 1,200 Development ca. 1915; newly carfree (1994--1999) Nürnberg - Langwasser ? 3,180 New development (1978-1987) Hamburg (Stadthaus Schlump) Small 45 dwelling units Carfree mixed-use conversion of an old hospital Hamburg (Saarlandstraße) ? 210 Dwellings New development (2000) Bremen (Grünenstraße) 1/5 acre 23 dwellings New development Tübingen (French Quarter) ? ? Some parts of redevelopment carfree Tübingen (converted military base) ? 6000 residents, 2000 jobs ? Munich - Kolumbusplatz (Haidhausen) ? 40 dwellings New development (near downtown) Munich (Messestadt Riem) ? 41 dwellings Carfree part of a larger new development Münster (Geist) Gartensiedlung Weissenburg ? 184 dwellings New development (2001) German Islands and Resorts (Residents are allowed cars on some islands) City Geographic Extent Population Character Helgoland Entire island ? North Sea Island Baltrum Entire island ? North Sea Island Spiekeroog Entire island ? North Sea Island Wangerooge Entire island ? North Sea Island Juist Entire island ? North Sea Island Baltrum Entire island ? North Sea Island Hiddensee Entire island ? Baltic Sea Island Rerik (Wustrow peninsula) ? 69 houses Largely undeveloped area on a Baltic Sea Peninsula; will probably become less carfree as it develops Niederrathen Entire village 500 Resort in Saxony Moritzdorf (Sellin) Entire village ? Resort on the island of Rügen Lechbruck am See Entire village ? Resort in Bavaria Hayingen Entire village 105 houses Resort in Swabia Hallig Hooge and Hallig Gröde Entire villages ? Resort in Schleswig-Holstein Hahnenklee-Bockswiese (Harz) Entire town 2,500 Resort in the Harz mountain area The Netherlands City Geographic Extent Population Character Giethoorn Entire town unk but small Transport by canal boat Amsterdam GWL project 600-unit carfree residential area About 1500 Ugly modern architecture on the site of a disused waterworks; some car parking at the edge Kalverstraat/Nieuwendijk, Amsterdam Long main shopping street with many narrow side streets Unknown; primarily commercial Shopping district; delivery vehicles allowed in AM Delft Most of the old center unk Medieval center Island of Schiermonnikoog Entire island About 1000 residents plus lots of tourists in season Only residents are allowed to bring cars onto the island Groningen Most of the old city center Estimated at 30,000 in the carfree area (the city is about 10 times larger) Medieval center is nearly carfree; mixed use area with university France City Geographic Extent Population Character Mont St. Michel 1-hectare island about 60 Carfree fortress/abbey Ile de Porquerolles, near Toulon Entire island is car-lite and many areas carfree 5000 (summers) Resort Lyon Avenue de la Republique, Rue Victor Hugo, and side streets Metro area is about 1.7 million; carfree area unk 17th-18th C mixed-use 6-story area Lyon Part of Vieux Lyon ? Medieval quarter Port Grimaud ? ? Resort Rue Mouffetard, Paris 0.5 km ? ? The walking mall next to St. Germain, Paris is about 1.5 km long and runs from place Odeon to rue Monge ? ? Pompidou Center, Paris ? ? Modern large-scale development Les Halles, Paris ? ? Redeveloped market area Montorgueil area, Paris ? ? ? Dijon Small carfree center ? Old buildings on narrow streets Strasbourg Part of the old town ? Medieval core Chambery Significant carfree area ? Medieval quarter Montpellier Many carfree streets 11,000 in the medieval quarter Center of medieval university town La Rochelle Carfree area and anti-car policies 80,000 (entire city) ? Tours Several blocks of the medieval old town are restricted to pedestrians only ? Old medieval center Bordeaux 4 km of streets ? Unknown; morning truck deliveries permitted; limited car access for residents Portugal City Geographic Extent Population Character Obidos Entire area of walled town Probably a few thousand Medieval walled hill town (now tourist area); only residents permitted to drive into the town, although cars are a nuisance Baixo, Lisbon One long shopping street, with a few side streets ? 18th C 5-story mixed use Santarem Most of the streets in the oldest part of town ? 3-story, old, mixed use area Faro Some of the downtown area 50,000 (whole city) 6-8 nice old streets that form a small network right in the center of town; very pleasant. Tavira Some of the old downtown 25,000 (whole city) Narrow, winding streets in the old part of town. Évora Most of the old walled city 8500 (in the walled city) This is an odd situation. The streets are so narrow that cars can't park on most of them, so the city has the look of a carfree city, but because of the highly irresponsible way that drivers rocket through the narrow streets, it certainly doesn't feel like a carfree city. Some areas are genuinely carfree (especially those streets with steps!). Carfree.com has issued a Travel Warning for Évora; read my open letter to the governor for more information. Coimbra Many small streets ? Old medieval quarter Viseu A number of narrow streets in the town center ? Largely intact medieval city; on Fridays, the entire old center is carfree Belgium City Geographic Extent Population Character Louvain la Neuve Most or all of the city ? University town; surface is carfree; streets and parking are below pedestrian streets Brugge (Bruges) ? ? Medieval town with large carfree center Ghent 35 hectares, entire city heart ? Largest carfree area in Belgium; Public transport, taxis and permit holders may enter but not exceed 5 km/hr UK, Channel Islands City Geographic Extent Population Character The Island of Sark (Channel Islands) Whole island ? Largely carfree Carnaby Street, Soho, London Carnaby Street and environs ? Carfree shopping area Leicester Square to Piccadily Circus, London Principally Coventry Street ? Carfree entertainment area London, Barbican About 38 acres 8000 Post-war carfree housing development. Roads & parking are underground Cambridge Center city and university campus Several thousand University town with heavy tourism; cars banned most of the day from downtown Edinburgh Slateford Green carfree development ? ? Bath City center ? While the center is carfree, traffic problems outside it are serious York Several vibrant alley ways in the center, including The Shambles ? Streets too narrow for cars Leeds, Yorkshire Large part of the city center ? Pedestrian precinct Lincoln Several cobbled streets around the Cathedral ? Carfree area near the center Isles of Scilly Group of Islands off Lands End ? Carfree except for the largest island, St. Martins Austria City Geographic Extent Population Character Vienna Autofreie Mustersiedlung Floridsdorf housing project 250 units New carfree residential project, organized by Green party Near St. Stephens Cathedral, Vienna "Sizable" carfree core ? Old center Feldkirch Historic center ? ? Salzburg A number of streets in the medieval center are carfree ? Lovely old town with significant carfree shopping areas Spain City Geographic Extent Population Character Seville Santa Cruz district has many narrow, carfree streets ? ? Madrid downtown area (Puerta del Sol) 6 blocks square ? Busy central area Segovia Large parts of the old, walled city ? Medieval area Santiago de Compostela Large central pedestrian zone ? ? Ayamonte (in S.W. corner) Downtown commercial district ? Old medieval quarter with very narrow streets; pretty river town on the flanks of a hill La Rambla, Barcelona one-mile-long pedestrianized boulevard ? Wide, shaded walkway filled with pedestrians day and night Barcelona Large carfree area Perhaps 100,000 Medieval center Algeciras Large network of carless shopping streets ? ? Greece City Geographic Extent Population Character Downtown Athens 400 sq. km. (entire city) 3,000,000 (entire city) While designated carfree, the ban is apparently widely ignored Hydra Island Entire island (50 sq. km.) 3000 No motorized vehicles on the entire island Spetses Island Town only 4000 (entire island) Carfree, possibly with some violations Sweden City Geographic Extent Population Character Gamla stan, Stockholm Most of the old heart (maybe 1 sq. km.) ? Oldest part of the city, very pretty medieval area; carfree during the day except for AM deliveries Drottninggatan, Stockholm One street and two squares ? Major pedestrian street connecting the squares Sergels torg and Hötorget Malmö Large pedestrian precint ? Center-city area; further expansion planned Växjö, Sweden Entire city center ? Carfree district in fossil-fuel reduced city Denmark City Geographic Extent Population Character Strøget, Copenhagen Large downtown carfree shopping area ? Old part of the city; heavily used Christiana community, Copenhagen All of an old military reservation Probably a few hundred Several streets with recycled and ad-hoc buildings; carfree Other Europe City Geographic Extent Population Character Prague, Czech Republic Large carfree area starting at Old Town Square and extending across the river ? Medieval quarter Tabor, Czech Republic "Modest network of carfree streets" ? Old town Dubrovnik, Croatia The old walled city ? Nearly carfree Rovinj, Croatia The old town is reported to be largely or entirely carfree ? Undoubtedly medieval Arbat Street, Moscow Small district ? Old area just outside the historic center. Helsinki 56 hectares ? Old city center Vilnius, Lithuania Large carfree area reported ? One of the largest surviving medieval quarters in Europe Riga, Latvia "Modest network of carfree streets" ? Old town Tallinn, Estonia "Modest network of carfree streets" ? Old town Buyukada Island, Istambul, Turkey One of the nine Marmara See islands, resort area 1500(?) Almost enitrely carfree North America USA Madison, San Francisco, and Las Vegas were all reported to have single carfree streets, which is not sufficient to merit inclusion under the current standard. City Geographic Extent Population Character Mackinac Island, Lake Huron Entire island 600 permanent residents Resort island; horse-and-buggy transport Fire Island, New York ? ? Most or all of the island is accessibly only by boat; wagons used for transport Roosevelt Island, East River, New York City Most or all of island unk but probably tens of thousands Some car access does exist, with large parking garages; very few local services Ithaca, New York Ithaca Commons ? downtown carfree area of modest extent Main Street Mall, Buffalo, New York Downtown light-rail mall ? Theater distsrict pedestrian/LRV mall Russell Island in the St. Clair River, Michigan ? ? Carfree resort community accessible only by boat; only golf carts are allowed on the island Minneapolis skyway 5 miles of enclosed overhead passageways 1,500 residences, 4,000 hotel rooms, 200 million square feet of office space, and 2.5 million square feet of retail space Commercial/retail heart of the city Stanford University, California 16 blocks on the university campus 15,000-20,000 Carfree during the day, with only pedestrians, bikes, and some buses Catalina Island, California Most of island ? Partially carfree; the town of Avalon is overrun by stinky gasoline-powered golf carts but 90% of the island is free of them Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica, California 1/2 mile of 3rd Street ? Carfree shopping district, with further expansion planned Isla Vista, California 4-6 square block area ? Lots of street life; unusually attractive setting, attached to university campus Columbia, California ? ? Small carfree district at the center RiverPlace, Portland, Oregon Pedestrian promenade about 1/2 mile long (the only large carfree area); pedestrian alleys connect other buildings to the promenade; the site is 73 acres About 1,200 Mixed-use development along the riverfront including apartments, retail, restaurants, a small market, and a waterfront pedestrian promenade Portland Center, Portland, Oregon Two pedestrian streets run parallel through the development, which includes two parks (carfree streets total about 1 mile length) About 1200 Mixed-use development with apartments, retail, and offices Boston, Massachusetts Downtown Crossing, several carfree streets ? Heart of the commercial district in old downtown Boston Tangier Island, Virginia Entire island 800 Carfree fishing & tourism community Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia 5 blocks plus side streets (from 9 AM to 5 PM) About 100 families of people who work there Restored Colonial-era village Bald Head Island, North Carolina Whole island 150 families Exclusive, golf-cart-based community Harbour Town, Hilton Head, South Carolina Artificial harbor with promenade and shops Few hundred Carfree resort community from the 1960s and 70s Shelter Cove Harbor, Hilton Head, South Carolina Artificial harbor with promenade and shops, larger than Harbour Town Several hundred Carfree resort community 1980s East Lake Commons, metro Atlanta 67 dwellings planned Probably 200 Parking will be located on the perimeter of the village. Access within the village core will be by walking, carts, and bicycles. Main Street Mall, Memphis, Tenn. 3/4 of a mile 5000 Carfree mixed-use district in the heart of the city Lincoln Road Mall, Miami Half-mile street (7 blocks) ? Shopping, socializing, dining al fresco in the heart of the Art Deco district St. Augustine, Florida Thought to have a pedestrianized center ? Old historic center San Antonio, Texas Riverwalk ? Carfree tourist area; lacks basic services Oklahoma City, Oklahoma [Removed: not carfree] n/a n/a New Orleans, Louisiana Several blocks between the Frech Quarter and the river Several hundred Carfree mixed use area served by a streetcar line Arcosanti, in Arizona New town built by Paolo Soleri 100? Carfree arcology Boulder, Colorado Pedestrian mall ? At the city center; there is some debate as to whether this really is a carfree area or not. Fort Collins, Colorado 7 acres, 4 streets City population 115,000 Old Town, commercial district, no traffic except for maintenance crews; area includes 60 apartments for the elderly Colorado State U., Fort Collins 4 long streets 25,000 students Carfree area of university campus, to be expanded Denver 16th Street Mall, about a mile long ? Transit mall with pedestrian-only extensions Canada City Geographic Extent Population Character Whistler, BC ? 9,000~25,000 Has a small carfree center Calgary, Alberta 7 & 8th Avenue Malls ? 7th Ave. is a transit mall; 8th Ave. is a pedestrian mall for several blocks. Calgary also has the "Plus-15" second-story system that connects many buildings in downtown. It totals more than 16 km. of passages. Montreal, Quebec 30 kilometers of underground passages Non-residential Carfree network of underground passages and shopping centers; rollerbladers and cyclists not permitted. The passages link some 60 large commercial, administrative, and apartment buildings in downtown. "P.A.T.H." Toronto, Ontario Kilometers of underground passages Non-residential Carfree network of underground passages and shopping centers Toronto Islands Several carfree islands just off downtown 300 Urban park and ecological community Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario 6 blocks Non-residential Shopping street 1 block south of Canadian Parliament Building Mont-Tremblant, Quebec ? ? Ski resort built as a carfree European-style village Central America City Geographic Extent Population Character San José, Costa Rica Several streets in the downtown area ? Several areas of the city have carfree sections, the largest being seven blocks long with side streets. The area is the commercial and civic center of the city and includes the plaza adjacent to the gorgeous Theatro Nacional. Tortuguero, Costa Rica Town on a coastal island 1000 Access by boat or airplane. There are no roads, only sidewalks and jungle paths connecting the buildings. According to Michael Totten, "It is the most relaxing and humanly scaled place I have ever been in the world." South America City Geographic Extent Population Character Curitiba, Brazil Only a limited carfree area in downtown ? Primarily interesting because of its unique bus system, running on dedicated streets and providing excellent, low-cost service Paquetá Island, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Entire island About 7000 Carfree island in Guanabara Bay, an hour by water from downtown Rio Bogotá, Colombia The Ciclovía , 110 kilometers of roads throughout the city 6.5 million The Ciclovía roads are closed to traffic Sundays and holidays for 7 hours, from 0700 to 1400, when more than 1.5 million people practice various sports, visit the recreational facilities, or go to cycle-mass. The city also plans to become largely carfree during rush hour by the year 2015. Caribbean City Geographic Extent Population Character Hopetown, Barbados (reportedly) ? ? When JHC visited in 1991, there was no substantial carfree area. Anyone know for sure? Australia City Geographic Extent Population Character Southbank, Melbourne Significant carfree sections ? ? Swanston Walk and Bourke Street Mall, Melbourne ? ? Open to trams but closed to cars (except Swanston, which is open to cars at night). We have further been advised that Swanston walk is "open to taxis/trucks/commercial vehicles 24 hours a day, and never free from people using it regardless of the law," and that Bourke Street Mall "is used by commercial vehicles also." Sorry! Rundle Mall, Adelaide Downtown mall and cross streets ? Commercial center Asia Japan According to one reporter, most towns have covered (i.e., carfree) streets. Tsumago, Japan ? ? Restored town near Mt. Fuji; some delivery traffic is allowed Tokyo ? ? Some of Tokyo's major shopping areas are closed to auto traffic on Sundays; these areas are called "pedestrian paradises." Tokyo, Asakusa area Small arcades ? Some streets in the same area are pedestrian from 10:00 until 18:00 Ueno area, next to the railway station Several streets ? ? Shinjuku station, Tokyo Kilometers of underground passages Central business district; in principle no residents Carfree network of underground passages and shopping centers; about 3,000,000 passengers per day use the station Kichijoji, Musashino, Tokyo One city block: two roofed streets, two open streets, many alleys 130,000 (Musashino) Carfree during the day except for morning deliveries Sapporo, Hokkaido Kilometers of underground passages 1,800,000 in city Carfree network of underground passages and shopping centers Shizuoka One kilometer of underground passages 470,000 in city Carfree network of underground passages and shops. The street above has traffic calming and wide sidewalks. Osaka, Namba area 2 long streets ? ? Osaka, Tenma area A street 2.6 km long ? ? Kobe Several streets in downtown ? ? Other Asia City Geographic Extent Population Character Gulangyu Island, Xiamen, China Carfree island ? See Pete Menchetti's photos and commentary. See also the New Colonist article Cheung Chau Island, (and others) off Hong Kong ? ? ? Matheran, India Entire town 5000 Carfree hill town Zhouzhuang, one of a number of small carfree towns (Xitang, Tong Li, possibly Wu Zhen) in the "water district" of Shanghai Area right along the river 2000 in the town Old carfree waterfront town that resembles Venice in some ways, including heavy tourist traffic. Novosibirsk, Siberia Entire city ? Research center in the coldest part of Siberia; highly car-moderated, although not carfree Bhaktapur, Nepal Entire city ? Planning to become carfree within 15 years Africa Morocco City Geographic Extent Population Character Fes-al-Bali (the oldest part of Fez) Entire city quarter except for a few roads entering a short ways from outside Population 156,000; may be the world's largest contiguous carfree area Old medina with streets mostly too narrow for cars Rabat Half of the medina ? Oldest area of the city, extremely narrow streets; some busy roads pass through the medina Casablanca Entire medina ? Oldest area of the city, extremely narrow streets Meknes Entire medina ? Oldest area of the city, extremely narrow streets Marrakesh The souk ? While the souk is carfree, the old areas nearby are not. Motorbikes plague nearly all streets. Essaouira ? ? Medina is carfree Chefchaoen ? ? Largely carfree Tangier ? ? Old medina is carfree Other Africa City Geographic Extent Population Character Lamu, Kenya Entire island ? Only the chief has a car (figures!) Cape Town, South Africa St. George's Mall, comprising five blocks ? Center-city mall

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