Officials of the Taipei city government's Department of Transportation, which organized the event, originally estimated that about 3,000 cyclists would participate in the ride, but it turned out that the public response was so overwhelming that nearly 30,000 showed up.

Among the cyclists were many executives of private enterprises and members of the Taipei City Council. They rode along two of the city's main thoroughfares -- made car-free by traffic control -- and then passed through the campus of National Taiwan University before making a round trip on a scenic riverside bike route between the Gongguan Riverside Plaza and the Jingmei Bridge.

Other activities celebrating the day will include live music entertainment and free coffee for EasyCard holders in Taipei's Xinyi business district Monday. The district will exercise traffic controls from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., during which no private cars and motorcycles will be allowed into the area.

From 5 a.m. Monday until 3 a.m. Tuesday, people using EasyCards on buses passing through the Xinyi district can enjoy free bus rides.

In the central city of Taichung, 5,000 cyclists celebrating World Car-Free Day enjoyed a ride in a car-free environment from a football stadium to a section of the elevated expressway between Taichung and Changhua to the south.

A drawing of lots was held at the end of the ride to give away a variety of prizes, including Giant bicycles, liquid crystal display televisions and hotel gift vouchers.

The southern port city of Kaohsiung also marked World Car Free Day a day earlier, with Mayor Chen Chu leading thousands of city residents on a 6.5-km bicycle ride from the city's Central Park to the Kaohsiung Cultural Center.

World Car-Free Day was initiated in France Sept. 22, 1998, and soon gained international support. Today the annual event is celebrated by over 100 million people in about 1,500 cities around the world.

Taipei has honored World Car-Free Day with various activities since 2002, while Taichung and Kaohsiung have followed suit since 2003.