See what it's like when streets are filled with people and the street becomes your playground. From 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday, Aug. 1, the Active Transportation Alliance's Open Streets event will give friends and families the chance to enjoy the streets the way they want: biking, dancing, playing, walking and more! The free event combines last year's two Sunday Parkways events into one huge eight-mile event spanning from Logan Square to Little Village, passing through Humboldt Park, North Lawndale and Garfield Park. There is no event registration. Participants can join in at any point along the route and step off the route at any of the parks or community-run activities. Plan a picnic or brunch at your favorite spot along the route and encourage your friends to turn out to join you!

More info.: http://www.activetrans.org/openstreets

David Lee Csicsko is a Chicago artist who recently won the commission for the new public art installation at the rebuilt Belmont CTA station following a competitive public selection process. The station and artwork are expected to be completed by the end of this year (view work-in-progress on the right). His Belmont 2000 work, which was originally intended as a temporary installation, had been on display at the old station since 1999 and was removed for the station construction.

What's the name of your new Belmont CTA piece, and how does it relate to the transit experience and to Lakeview?

As part of the second annual Low-Car Diet, Zipcar is challenging people in 13 cities to give up their cars for one month and learn what car-free living is all about. To help wean them off of their driving habit, Zipcar is of course offering them a car sharing membership, as well as transit passes and bikes in some of the participating cities. In Chicago, 30 residents are taking part in the challenge, ditching their cars from July 15 - Aug. 15.

Visit http://www.zipcar.com/lowcardiet and click on the '08 tab to read about the experiences of participants from last year. The results showed a 71% decrease in miles driven among the participants, which would support the claim that people who use car sharing end up driving less.

On July 3, my partner and I took a daycation with a couple friends up to Kenosha, Wis., via Metra. Kenosha first piqued my interest when I read about their streetcar system and harbor development. But I've also been interested for a while in checking out walkable towns in the Chicago area accessible by Metra (Kenosha's Metra station has a Walk Score of 83!).

You know the culture of carfree is gaining momentum when you see two books come out within months of each other catering to the carfree folks of Chicago. And it's just as exciting to see the web community in Chicago take note of these books with great interviews with the authors.

Carless in Chicago, by Jason Rothstein