The Princeton Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee will host the first annual Princeton Ciclovia on Sunday, May 4, from 1-4 p.m. on Quaker Road in Princeton. The Ciclovia, which is a Spanish term that means “cycleway,” will open the road to community use for participants to walk, push strollers, skate, run, bike, use wheelchairs and walkers, rollerblade, dance, and use the road in creative and active ways. Leashed dogs are also welcome to walk or run. Quaker Road will be closed to automobile traffic.

Sponsored with the support of the town of Princeton, the Princeton Police Department, West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance, East Coast Greenway, Greater Mercer TMA, Historical Society of Princeton, Princeton Friends Meeting, Princeton Friends School, Princeton Battlefield Society, Boys and Girls Club of Trenton and Mercer County Bike Exchange, Princeton Freewheelers, D&R Canal Watch, and Sustainable Princeton, this free event is designed to promote active living for the community and to increase the awareness of biking, walking, and other non-motorized forms of transportation.

A Ciclovia has no start or finish line; it is not a race. Between 1 and 4 p.m. on May 4, participants can join the Ciclovia where convenient and can ride, walk, skate, etc., in either direction. Participants are encouraged to walk, run or ride to Quaker Road. An easy paced ride will be led from Princeton Shopping Center at 12:15 p.m.

Cyclists can also park and ride the tow path from any D&R Canal parking area. If riding or walking from the Institute Woods, take the Trolley Track Trail or the Pipeline Trail to Princeton Friends Meeting. If arriving via Mercer Road, there is an access path from the Princeton Battlefield parking area that leads to Friends Meeting. Parking will be available in the parking lot of the Friends School at the corner of Mercer Road and Quaker Road in Princeton and in the ‘Babies ‘R Us’ parking lot at the Nassau Park shopping center in West Windsor.

The Princeton Historical Society’s Updike Farm will provide a backdrop for a variety of activities including swing dancing demonstrations and fitness activities. The Updike Farm will be open for tours throughout the afternoon. The D&R Canal Watch will offer two guided walks. At 1:30 p.m, Ted Chase will lead a Bird Walk and at 3 p.m. Doug McCray will lead a History Walk. Both guided walks will step off from the D&R Canal parking lot near Port Mercer and each will take about 30 minutes. At 2:15 p.m, Princeton Mayor Liz Lempert and other officials will welcome participants at the Updike Farm.

A worldwide movement, with activities throughout the United States as well as Australia, New Zealand and Canada, Ciclovias originated in Bogota, Columbia and are popular in Latin America. A Ciclovia is designed to enhance community engagement and expand the concept of vehicle-free public spaces while encouraging people of all ages and abilities to be physically active. The Princeton Ciclovia will take place rain or shine.