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No cars allowed: Detroit event lets pedestrians reimagine city streets

For the next two Sundays, the Downtown Detroit Partnership is shutting down almost 4 miles of road and inviting pedestrians to wander the streets
flickr user Ken Lund
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http://j.mp/1SPGCl0
For the next two Sundays, the Downtown Detroit Partnership is shutting down almost 4 miles of road and inviting pedestrians to wander the streets

The Next Idea

Two years ago, on a sunny September afternoon, there was a special celebration to mark the end of a long spell of construction on I-96 in western Wayne County.

Before opening the freeway to traffic, the Michigan Department of Transportation invited the public to come play on the nearly two-mile stretch of renovated road.

The turnout was big: the freeway filled with people walking, running, biking and rollerblading.

And now there’s another chance to see our roads in a new light withOpen Streets Detroit.

The next two Sundays, they’re opening up stretches of two streets, running from downtown Detroit to southwest Detroit, no cars allowed. It’s a great opportunity to get out there and really see the neighborhood.

Lisa Nuszkowski is with theDowntown Detroit Partnership, the nonprofit that’s leading Open Streets Detroit.

She joined us today to talk about the event.

 Our conversation with Lisa Nuszkowski. Nuszkowski is executive director of Detroit Bike Share and director of Strategic Programs at the Downtown Detroit Partnership.

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