I recently visited Istanbul, Turkey and was struck immediately by the car traffic congestion. However, knowing that Istanbul hosted the World Carfree Conference last year, I set out to uncover what NYC can learn from a city with a population of 12 million plus people, 2.4 million cars and at least 100,000 new vehicles each year.

I met up with urban planner, World Carfree Network Advisory Board Member and local StreetStar, Kevser Üstündag. As a professor at the Architectural Faculty of Mimar Sinan Fine Art University in Istanbul, she teaches about the social, environmental and economical impacts of urban transportation planning. In this video she discusses the importance of adjusting urban planning to the needs of people - including public transportation, pedestrian only streets, and Car-free Sundays.