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A street in Shoreditch went ‘car-free’ last week as part of a coordinated Europe-wide week of celebration and incentive to get more people walking, cycling and using public transport.

Pop-ups offering free bike checks, coffee and pizza, and demonstrations of electric vehicles, cycles and scooters formed part of the initiative which saw Rivington Street closed to motor vehicles between Garden Walk and Curtain Road for Car Free Day on Tuesday of last week.

The event, which forms part of EU Mobility Week, was organised by the Zero Emissions Network (ZEN), made up of green experts from Hackney, Islington and Tower Hamlets councils, who help businesses in and around Shoreditch operate cleaner, cheaper and healthier. Around 35 new businesses signed up to the network which now boasts more than 700 members.

Elsewhere, the Council:

• Launched a new community cycle hub in the Geffrye Estate and relaunched two in the Gascoyne and Kingsmead estates.
• Signed up students at the BSix College’s freshers’ fair for cycle training and to become Travel Ambassadors to encourage greener travel in the school.
• Relaunched STARS Europe Youth Travel Ambassadors at The Bridge Academy which sees students work on campaigns to get their peers cycling more.
• Worked with the borough’s three car clubs, DriveNow, Zipcar and City Car Club - which offered free membership for Hackney residents during the week - to promote car-sharing.
• Led group cycling sessions.
• Promoted the Beat the Street game which encourages schoolchildren to walk and cycle to school by finding and tapping ‘Beat Boxes’ in Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest.
• Introduced charity Living Streets’ Walk Once a Week initiative to Woodberry Down Primary School.
• Talked to businesses about grants available to them as part of the Council’s Workers Travel Survey.

The theme of this year’s EU Mobility Week was 'Choose, Change, Combine' which aims to promote and showcase as many different ways of green or greener travel as possible.