On South Street, just about everything was welcome - but cars

For five hours Saturday, South Street showed what a car-free world would look like.

From Second Street to the Schuylkill, the largely commercial corridor of restaurants, bars, and specialty shops was included in 10 miles of Philadelphia streets where motorized vehicles were temporarily barred.

It was the inaugural ride for Philly Free Streets, influenced by the widespread shutdown of major city thoroughfares a year ago when Pope Francis was in town that wound up delighting residents who stuck around to enjoy life without dodging cars.

Of the thousands of people Saturday who walked, jogged, biked, or used some other form of human-powered wheels (Rollerblades, skateboards, push-scooters, and hoverboards among them) to get around where motorized transportation was not allowed, several described a sense of freedom.

"It's really nice, especially with kids, of not having to fight with other bikes for lanes on Kelly Drive like any other weekend," said Susan Lorenz, 32, of Mount Airy. She was taking a short break, seated at a courtyard at Second and South Streets with 1-year-old son Emmett and a friend, Sarah Kolp, 32, of Fitler Square.

Earlier, they took in the mosaic murals at Magic Gardens at Eighth and South Streets. Emmett dabbled in kids' arts and danced to kids' music along the route.

As she strolled down the middle of South Street with confidence and a zip in her step, Karen Juhasz, 51, of Raleigh, N.C., reveled in not having to worry about getting hit by a car. Juhasz has partial vision and uses a cane.

"I am really enjoying this. I love Philly," Juhasz said on her first visit back after living here for six months in 2012 to work for Alex's Lemonade stand.

"I am actually moving here at some point," she said. "It's very walkable and has tons of public transportation."

The morning's cloudy skies and coolish temperatures were not a drag on Philly Free Streets spirits, and police reported no major problems. Crowd estimates for the car-free hours were in the "tens of thousands," according to Mike Dunn, a spokesman for Mayor Kenney.

"Everything went smoothly," Police Officer Gabriel Torres, in the South Street substation, said after the event concluded at 1 p.m.

One hiccup was the towing of several cars from the Philly Free Streets zone. Chalking it up to "a miscommunication," a city spokesman later Saturday afternoon said all affected motorists would receive refunds for towing fees, and any tickets issued would be canceled.

Event organizers said a big goal was to link several city neighborhoods - 21 in all - by foot and to encourage those who have never ventured into some of them to do so.

To kick things off, Philadelphia Managing Director Michael DiBerardinis led a bike ride down South Street that started at 8 a.m. That was followed by a power walk at 9 paced by the famously quick-striding Mayor Kenney.

Festivities stretched from Front and South west to the South Street Bridge. From there, enjoying the carless experience could be continued along the Schuylkill River Trail to Martin Luther King Drive and into West Fairmount Park and Parkside.

Activities included mural arts, T-shirt silk-screening, yoga, dancing, and music. Food trucks lined Martin Luther King Drive.

Shops and restaurants on or near South Street did well, as those who came to experience a rarity stayed to browse or eat after car traffic was allowed to resume.

Jeff Roth, 35, service manager at Bicycle Therapy at 2211 South St., couldn't install new tires or pump up old ones fast enough. He also sold some new multispeed hybrid bikes.

"It's been pretty steady all morning," he said, installing a new tire as a line of customers waited for him. "I could live with this every day."

The city's Indego bike-share program was also well booked. Of the three Indego stations on South Street, none had any bikes left to rent by noon.

Out along the Schuylkill, 10 volunteers at the Pennsylvania Center for Adapted Sports, a nonprofit group that helps people with physical disabilities engage in an active lifestyle, met at 7 a.m. and rode into Center City together, arriving at Front and South Streets at 8 for the kickoff of Philly Free Streets.

The group used two arm-powered tricycles and two other adaptive bikes.

Philly Free Streets "allowed people that normally would not venture into the city on these adaptive bikes, out of fear of traffic and getting struck, to be able to enjoy what the city has to offer in a car-free environment," said John Siemiarowski, 62, of East Mount Airy. "Most of us that rode in do not live in the city."

The Holders do. As he powered his push-scooter alongside daughter Kitty's unicycle, Gaylord Holder was all smiles.

He said Saturday was a wish come true.

"I experienced Pope Francis and how everybody was out on the streets and having a good time then," said Holder, 55, who lives at Fifth and Lombard. "So I am really glad someone thought of this. I'm hoping it becomes an annual event."