Celebrating this year’s World Car Free Day – 22 September 2025
We’re supporting this year’s World Car Free Day, which is celebrated today, 22 September. It’s a great opportunity to experience the streets of London without a car. Consider jumping on your bike, walking or using public transport. Or even give roller skating or skateboarding a try!
Yesterday, Oxford Street came alive with music, arts, food, drink, and more for the community-focused car-free day.
The Foundation for Future London encourages more people to get involved with World Car Free Day for many reasons. We love the environmental sustainability aspect, which is about caring for the environment, which in turn cares for us. Better communities with vibrant, accessible green and blue spaces mean we will experience better physical and mental health, too.
What better place to be in nature than East London, by taking a walk through Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Newham, along the canals and in the marshes of Hackney and Waltham Forest or in Victoria Park in Tower Hamlets.
World Car Free Days provide a real boost to the environment. Trainline reported that on car-free days in Paris and London, air pollutant levels dropped by 40% and 89% respectively.
We also think health and wellbeing is vital to helping us all live better, longer and more fulfilling lives. Walk, run or skip, with friends, with family or on your own. Play outside with your friends, through a game of football, rounders or ping pong. Play and active lifestyles is for all ages.
Increasing numbers of the UK population are willing to ditch their cars: 56% would like to walk or cycle more, and 50% would prefer to use public transport more frequently (Trainline).
And did you know that cycling is four times more efficient as an exercise than walking? So says an article in today’s Independent.
However, never fear, the 10,000 steps are still as equally beneficial.
If you work, live, play or visit Newham, why not download the Newham Better Points app, which rewards walking with prizes and other rewards. We are a proud supporter of this app, thanks to funding from our Westfield East Bank Creative Futures Fund, made possible through our partner Westfield Stratford City.
Need more inspiration to transform your grey spaces? We love this parklet guide, which shares the how-to to go about creating community spaces on street kerbs with benches, seats, planters, inspired by Hackney-resident Brenda Puech and many others.
Meanwhile in Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest, it’s great to see more people getting involved with cycling and walking thanks to support from the Councils and local groups and organisations.
Learn more