The Colombo Municipal Council is partnering with the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Sri Lanka to pilot Colombo's first car-free day.
'CarFreeCMB' will take place on Sunday, July 14 from 6 am to 12 noon. The public is invited to join in by foot, bicycle, skateboard - or by any other means which is not motored, organisers said in a statement. The initiative aims to reduce the public's dependence on motor vehicles while promoting a healthier lifestyle.
Colombo city will open the following streets exclusively to pedestrians and cyclists to facilitate this experience.
Accordingly, the roads will include Green Path up to the Public Library roundabout, part of the Dr. C.W.W. Kannangara Mawatha, Stanley Wijesundera Mawatha, and Bauddhaloka Mawatha. However, arrangements will be made for bus routes to function as usual.
"Us Dutch are very well known for embracing cycling as the preferred method of transport in our cities and we are seeing the results in our national figures for health and contentment and in reduced rates for road accidents as well," Netherlands Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Joanne Doornewaard, was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the organisers.
"They can enjoy clean air and we'll have many fun activities and no plastic on this day. I'm really looking forward to enjoying the beauty of these areas in Colombo, car-free, " Ms. Doornewaard said in the statement.
I still remember the day of August 1947 floods, as it was the last school day at Kingswood College Kandy and the height the water soured. Water rose to the height of the Cross of the Chrurch at Getambe and the water was so high that it engulfed the Getambe Rajaponawarma Temple leaving only a few leaves of the Bo-tree visible.
The Colombo Additional Magistrate has ordered the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) to investigate and submit a report over a complaint about the alleged illegal assets gained by model Piumi Hansamali.
Heritage properties are major tourist attractions world over. Sri Lanka is no exception in this matter. From Colombo, Galle, most of the mountain cities including Nuwara Eliya, Bandarawela, Hatton and Kandy and in the North, hundreds of heritage properties are spread across.
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