Authored By seanphippster

The idea is to open the streets but also to open your eyes. What would a Frazier Avenue look like without cars?

Scenic Streets Chattanooga is a multifaceted free event that will offer a new way to think about Chattanooga’s North Shore. The plan is to open up the streets-all of Frazier, the Market Street Bridge and more-to give residents an idea of what the area might feel like if automobile traffic were reduced to a minimum.

But the event also promises to be a lot of fun for attendees.

The Chattanooga Market will allow vendors to set up booths on the Market Street Bridge. Frazier Avenue will become a protected two-way bike lane, and businesses will set up sidewalk shops to encourage residents to slow down and enjoy the area at a different pace.

Click here for a map of the event.

Festivities begin at 11 a.m. April 19, and road closures will remain through 3 p.m. Chattanooga Police Department Chief Fred Fletcher will lead a kickoff bike ride at 11:30 a.m. The route will begin on Frazier, continue around the Walnut Street Bridge and return back across the Market Street Bridge.

After that, the rest of the afternoon is open for residents to enjoy the new street: food vendors, shopping, yoga and live music.

“I think most Chattanoogans understand that Frazier Avenue really is populated with people,” event coordinator Christy Smith said. “It’s not a surprise. We just want to make it easier for everybody so that cars will see people and slow down. It becomes more of a boulevard instead of a thoroughfare.”

Parking will still be available in Coolidge Park and surrounding areas, but city officials will begin shutting down the streets at 6 a.m. Smith said a group of people will use tape on the streets to give an indication of what it might look like in the future if the number of automobile lanes were reduced to two.

The idea for Scenic Streets came from the popular ciclovias held throughout the world. The original event in Bogotá, Columbia, now features 70 miles of streets open to the public on Sundays. A similar event called Atlanta Streets Alive offers a 4.5-mile loop around five city neighborhoods. More than 100,000 people attend the annual event.

BikeToursDirect is the primary sponsor for the event. Other sponsors include the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce’s North Chattanooga Council, Publix, the Chattanooga Market and Causeway. Click here for a full list of sponsors.

More details are available here.