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Frustrated by the slow pace of government action on pedestrian and bicycle safety issues, bicycle advocates in Mexico City took matters into their own hands this month. In early November, a group of activists painted a five-kilometer bike lane through the Federal District — straight to the doors of Congress.

According to event organizers: “We worked for eight hours. We painted five kilometers. We spent less than 1,000 dollars. How much would it cost to actually build the bicycle infrastructure the city needs?”

In 2007, the municipal government promised to build 300 km of bike lanes within five years. Due to lack of funding for non-motorized transportation, only 22.2 km have been built. The event in Mexico City this month was part of a nationwide campaign demanding that Mexico allocate at least 5 percent of its transportation budget to bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure.

Areli Carreón, president of the bicycle advocacy group (and Alliance member organization) Bicitekas, says event organizers got the word out using social media, including e-mail, Facebook and Twitter. They also posted a How-To guide on the web a few days in advance. Funding was raised through Fondeadora, a crowd-sourcing site that lets people donate money to causes or projects they care about.

Three of Mexico’s most influential newspapers — Reforma, El Universal and Milenio — ran stories on the event. “All the activity was covered live by Twitters on the spot, which also generated a lot of noise and support,” Areli says.

Weeks later, the so-called “wikilane” remains intact and advocates have drafted a letter to authorities asking that it be designated an official bike lane.

The creative action is just one example of how advocates’ efforts are starting to pay off at the national level. “The 2012 annual national budget included, for the first time, the concept of ‘non motorized mobility,’” Areli says. “It’s not the 5 percent we wanted, but it’s a very important step in the right direction. We’re happy with this first positive outcome!”

By Mike Samuelson, Alliance Members Services and Open Streets Coordinator

The Alliance is proud to welcome our first member organization from Mexico: Bicitekas.

Founded in 1998, the Mexico City-based group promotes biking as a healthy and environmentally friendly mode of transportation, while working to earn the respect of motorists and fighting for a network of infrastructure to allow Chilangos (residents of Mexico City) to use bikes as a mode of transportation. Bicitekas also helped found BiciRed, a national organization linking biking advocacy organizations across Mexico.

Recently, both groups welcomed musician David Byrne on his tour of Latin America, and used the opportunity to promote their campaign asking local governments to dedicate 5 percent of their transportation funding toward cycling. The groups would like to see that money used to create safe infrastructure, fund educational campaigns promoting the benefits of cycling and enact new regulations governing urban planning that facilitate easier cycling.

Next up, Bicitekas will help represent BiciRed at the Car Free Conference in Guadalajara, where they will host a panel on the health risks created by car emissions, as well as presenting on the groups new book, Por Mi Ciudad En Bicicleta.

Photo by Aaron Borrás