Tucson’s streets became a no-cars zone on Sunday, Oct. 27, as the community celebrated the 21st Cyclovia event.

Traffic was shut down from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday as tens of thousands took to city streets on bikes, trikes and skates. 

The Spanish term Ciclovía (“cycle way”) describes street closures meant to encourage walking, cycling and community gatherings. Bogotá, Colombia, held the first Ciclovía in 1974 and has inspired similar events worldwide, including in Tucson, which has held its first in 2010. Tucson’s events are held in the fall and spring.

Living Streets Alliance, a local organization dedicated to turning streets into vibrant public spaces, leads the charge, offering safe, accessible and inviting transportation choices for everyone.

This year’s event showcased hundreds of booths along the route through wound from downtown to the south side. Food vendors and street performers invited attendees to connect with their community while the streets pulsed with music, dance and cheers. One vendor offered free bike helmets to kids. 

 At the southernmost section, an Indigenous Art Market highlighted local artisans, while two miles north, Armory Park served as a main entry for those arriving from Sixth Avenue, where crowds were quickly captivated by the high-flying stunts of Genuine BMX performers.

“The bike scene here is huge! Whenever something like this is going on, I gotta come out,” said Adler Cromer, a 21-year-old BMX athlete. 

Cromer, who has been passionate about BMX since he was 10, attended his fifth Cyclovia event this year. 

“If you live in Tucson, definitely get on a bike,” he said.

Near the Children’s Museum, Tucson Circus Academy performers also dazzled attendees with aerial shows.

​​“I feel the aerial apparatus definitely get me in the way that anyone’s art gets them,” said 18-year-old aerialist Maria Collins. “The way a painter moves with their paint, the way a dancer moves with their limbs, I move with aerial apparatus.”

Collins has trained at the academy for six years and has performed at the last three Cyclovia events. 

“What I love about Cyclovia is seeing everyone out on the streets; everyone is in their own little world but also, we’re all here together,” she said. 

Volunteers estimated this year’s attendance broke the record of 45,000 participants last fall. Of those, two-thirds chose not to drive to the event, opting instead for bikes, walking or public transit.

“It’s very inspiring to see it grow each year,” said 63-year-old volunteer Mary Ramirez. “To see it manifest into this has been so incredible.”

Ramirez, who moved from Nogales to Tucson, recalled the early days of Cyclovia. 

“The first one was just a small event on the south side, maybe a hundred of us, maybe,” she said.

Tucson’s bike-friendly reputation has grown over the years, with the city offering everything from The Loop to Mt. Lemmon. In 2022, Livability.com ranked Tucson No. 2 among “surprisingly bike-friendly cities.” 

Mountain biker David Lelio moved from Tallahassee, Florida, to Tucson two-and-a-half  years ago, partly for Tucson’s renowned trails. 

“We have some of the best mountain biking in the world,” he said, adding that he quickly found a welcoming biking community. “That’s the cool part about Tucson: it’s big enough to have diversity but small enough to feel like family.”

No date has been set for a spring 2025 Cyclovia. Last spring, organizers called off the event due to budget constraints.

Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.