TODAY is No Car Day, and not one to be left behind, the Cyprus Mail paid homage by trying out a little experiment, commuting to the office by bus, the only form of public transport available on the island.
As part of European Mobility Week, which runs from September 16 to 22 every year, Cyprus will host its, ‘In Town, Without My Car!’ campaign with Nicosia’s Makarios Avenue closed off to cars from 10.30am today.
Other European countries celebrated No Car Day yesterday, so why is taking place a day later here? “Because the local authorities don’t want to disrupt the roads on a working day as there is no public transport available,” said Efi Xanthou, secretary-general of the Young Ecologists, the youth branch of the Green Party.
“Across Europe, people won’t be able to take their cars to work so will take public transport. This is impossible in Cyprus. People are so used to driving and have no incentive to do otherwise.”
This year’s theme is climate change, with the campaign slogan: ‘Walk, cycle, go by bus, car share, change.’
So, on the buses it was. I left home just after 9.30am for the ten-minute walk to the bus stop (thank God it’s September as I would have been sweating profusely if we were still at the height of summer).
The headquarters of the Nicosia Bus Company had kindly provided me with a timetable and I allowed myself a 5-10 minute leeway, as I really did not want to miss the bus, bearing in mind the next one would not be arriving for 40 minutes.
Surprisingly, the number 27 was only five minutes late and I hopped on, paying my 65-cent fare.
I thought it would be a good opportunity to catch up on some reading, but that thought quickly went out of the window as the radio was blaring from the speakers, making concentration difficult.
Curious, I looked around at the other passengers, finding most to be older Cypriots. I also noticed that one of the windows had a huge crack in it.
I don’t think the air-conditioning system was switched on, but it was hard to tell with all the windows open, creating a nice breeze.
The journey to Solomou Square was timed at 11 minutes and I arrived at the office 35 minutes after setting off from my apartment. Not too bad, I hear you say, but considering it takes seven minutes door-to-door in my car, the trip took five times longer.
I realise some people have no other choice but to take the bus, with my journey making me realise how lucky I am to own a car.
Xanthou described European Mobility Week as, “a great idea to remind people to think about the environment. Small things, such as car pooling and walking, can go a long way.”
She demanded the government address the public transport issue. “The longer it takes to establish, the harder it will be for people to get into the idea of using it,” she said.
“Getting around is a huge problem for the under 18s who don’t have cars and are dependent on their parents to drive them. Bicycles are extremely dangerous, as we do not have designated lanes.”
When asked why Cyprus has no public transport system apart from the bus network, Green Party leader George Perdikis questioned whether we could even classify the buses as a public transport system, as they offered such poor service.
