This Friday, September 22, Car Free Day will be celebrated worldwide and is also the highlight of Sustainable Mobility Week, which runs from September 16 to 22 every year.

Sustainable Mobility Week aims to promote and encourage the use of sustainable options to travel. This year, the National Transit Agency (ANT) urged citizens through social networks to bet on a cleaner and healthier future using non-motorized modes of transportation such as walking and cycling; or to share the vehicle with other people.

On World Car Free Day, people are encouraged to leave their cars parked and use alternative transportation methods, for one day only, to raise environmental awareness.

While cars provide a convenience in moving from one place to another, the symbolism of the date of Car Free Day serves to create awareness that vehicles are not only increasing environmental and noise pollutionbut also contribute to the increase in traffic accidents and deaths.

In Ecuador, most of the population travels to their daily tasks in public (urban) transportation vehicles. In the city of Quito, 900,000 people were mobilized daily in 2019, of which 325,000 traveled in trolleybus units, 272,830 in Ecovía and the remainder in the various urban transport corridors.

Although it is not a mass practice in Ecuador, the authorities of some cities and municipalities in neighboring countries such as Colombia commemorate Car Free Day annually, and their citizens say there is so much respect that they praise the fact that many streets are free of traffic and traffic congestion.

Narcolepsy day

Also on September 22nd World Narcolepsy Daya sleep disorder that affects a fairly high percentage of the population, causing changes in the lives of patients and their families.

Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disease, the symptoms of which usually include the person having a very high degree of daytime sleepiness, in addition to cataplexy, or what is the same, sudden loss of muscle tone due to emotions. (JO)