European Mobility Week - Could it Work in the US??

I just read an article about the Eurpoean Mobility Week that centered around World Car-Free Day yesterday (Sept. 22nd)

Did you participate and not drive yesterday? Did you even know it was Car-Free Day!?  I asked many of my friends and most of them had no idea what I was talking about.  Was I shocked or surprised they did not know about it?  No not at all.  Perhaps if I was not involved in the Green Community then I would never have heard about it also??

Our goverment and politicians spend countless hours and money debating the climate bill and more, yet something that is GLOBAL to raise awareness flies under the radar.  Why are there no PSA's about this?

Most have now heard of Earth Day and perhaps Earth Week and Month, but Car-Free Day, nope??

Of course in the US and especially in SoCal we are obsessed with driving and well is it even realistic to have a car free day?  Maybe on a weekend and I can understand it would be hard for folks to get to work during the week! 

However, that is the point!  A lack of alternate fuel-saving transportation!  This is where the goverment and lawmakers come into play. So it becomes one vicious cycle.  How do we break a cycle or pattern is through awareness. 

Awareness can occur on many levels including local cities holding events.  However, according to Wiki, San Francisco was the ONLY town in Calironia to have a planned event for Car-Free Day!?

According to the article I read like I said there is a whole week dedicated to this day and over 1600 cities participated!!  So I ask could this work in the US!? Why not?

What do you all think?  This is a little of what happened in Europe:

Walkers, joggers, skaters and cyclists experienced unusual freedom - and quiet - in Brussels on Sunday, where, for the most part, the city's residents left their cars at home.

Brussels is one of 1,667 cities across the continent to designate at least one day this week as car-free - part of European Mobility Week.

Participating cities design their own events, which are sponsored by the European Commission and coordinated by campaign groups focused on urban environmental issues, including Eurocities and Energie-Cités.

Some places, like Almada in Portugal, were reported to be handing out free public transport tickets to citizens who handed in recyclable materials as part of an initiative dubbed "Trips for trash."

The focus in most areas, however, has been cutting down on the amount of time people spend driving private cars. Authorities in Budapest, for example, pledged to hold three car-free days, including Tuesday, Sept. 22, which is the day that European authorities recommend cities use to restrict vehicle-use.

Source: Green Inc.