Hollywood Boulevard will be car-free on Aug. 18. (photo courtesy of CicLAvia)

CicLAvia will commandeer the streets once again on Sunday, Aug. 18, for its 54th event. It marks the third August in a row that the people-powered festivities will take over the Hollywoods – from east to west. Approximately 6.6 miles of streets will be car-free, along Hollywood Boulevard, Highland Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard in East Hollywood, Hollywood and West Hollywood.

Participants can join anywhere on the route, which is filled with activations and activities involving local businesses, artists and restaurants. There are five hubs throughout the streets, which include restrooms, water-refilling stations, bike repair stations and first aid. Chief strategist Tafarai Bayne also praised advancements in Hollywood’s infrastructure.

“We’re very excited for the debut of new bike and pedestrian infrastructure designed to make this part of the city safer for people to experience one of L.A.’s most vibrant communities,” Bayne said. “Built by the L.A. Department of Transportation, the project features a protected bike lane and center turn lanes reducing excessive speeding, reducing pedestrian exposure, providing safer turns for drivers and providing dedicated space for bikes and scooters. Projects like this will help create more CicLAvia-like spaces all week long, not just on Sundays. LADOT will be at the event to engage participants and educate about the project.”

Bayne said that Hollywood is typically one of the city’s most dangerous traffic areas.

“It’s intimidating to traverse it on foot and difficult by bicycle while being regularly clogged by automobile traffic. Our event provides the unique opportunity to really take in all Hollywood offers from Thai Town to the Walk of Fame to West Hollywood and so many neighborhoods and points in between. There is so much culture here we have to translate our outreach documents into five different languages. It really is an example of what makes L.A. so special.”

West Hollywood Mayor John Erickson helped bring CicLAvia back to West Hollywood in 2022.

“This is such a popular event, and you see it by the sheer joy of everyone – even if you don’t like bike lanes. I guarantee you most of those people will be on bikes themselves,” he said. “I love biking by and seeing all the people I know stopping by our amazing businesses, spending all day out on that route, and just seeing how happy people are when they’re on a bike and not in a car stuck in traffic.”

“CicLAvia gets us outdoors, in a slower-moving and safer-feeling environment, for a day of fun, learning and togetherness,” West Hollywood City Councilwoman Lauren Meister said. “My legs are my people-powered vehicle of choice – I’m a walker!”

Bayne said he always forgets “how much noise cars make.”

“Once they are gone, I feel more relaxed. Everything slows down,” he said. “I usually get around CicLAvia by bike, but I have a special place in my heart for our Pedi-Cabs. Free for everyone, they help to make the event very accessible and are a very relaxing way to get around.”

CicLAvia was inspired by an event in Bogotá, Columbia, which celebrated its 50th anniversary earlier this year. Since 2010, CicLAvia in Los Angeles has been closing streets to help connect neighborhoods and get people out of their cars using only people-powered vehicles. The event’s objective is to build a more “unifying social fabric,” according to its website, as well as bring awareness to important issues like air quality improvement and environmental health.

“Ultimately our goal with this program is to bring more open street events to more communities and to inspire the Los Angeles region to bring more infrastructure to our streets that will bring safer streets to residents and help us all have more CicLAvia-like experiences every day,” Bayne said. “Our streets become barriers, like great walls that divide neighborhoods. When we remove the cars and fill that space with people, we create a sense of connection that I think people really need right now.”

Only people-powered vehicles are allowed at CicLAvia events – be it bicycles, skateboards, pedal cars or non-electric scooters. For information on the CicLAvia – Meet the Hollywoods event and route, visit ciclavia.org.