WKCR: Cars were first let into Central Park in 1899, and according to Graham Beck, people have been fighting to keep them out ever since. Beck is the Campaign and Communications Coordinator at an organization called Transportation Alternatives. They're working to make Central Park's loop drive, not the four east-west transverses, free from cars 24 hours a day. The loop drive is currently only open to cars on weekdays between 7 am and 7pm. Beck says that since 1899 the campaign to oust cars for good has only increased. In the 60s the first car-free hours were established and then more recently in 2004 the Department of Transportation reduced the speed limit to 25 mph made 7pm-7am car free and created car pool requirements. I asked Beck why he believes the campaign is so important.Graham Beck: I think the benefits of a car-free Central Park are great in number and very varied. It's really depending on what you're looking at and who you're talking to, but of course health being a great one. Tons of people, millions of people exercise in Central Park yearly. And exercising in proximity to particulate matter produced by auto exhaust is a great danger. Unfortunately. New York has very few emissions free areas, or Manhattan has very few emissions free areas and Central Park could be a great opportunity for millions of people to have healthy space for recreation. Along those same lines, with what people are really terming a diabetes epidemic sweeping the city the opportunities for decreased sedentary time, time outside of your house, time just to be outside and play would be great in combating that. Of course, quality of life issues, a serene space to relax in New York is truly something people need and people seek. Central Park was designed to be that. It was designed to be a respite from the urban chaos. And then of course there's safety. People get hurt. There're collisions in central park between motorists pedestrians and motorists and joggers and motorists and cyclists. They have gone down in recent years, but there are serious issues and a lot to be done safety-wise to really combat that if the loop was car-free.That was Graham Beck of Transportation Alternatives. For more information visit www.carfreecentralpark.com.