2024
«Every day, many of us fight for an urban life that doesn’t cost us our lives.»
Choosing to ride a bike shouldn’t cost us our lives. I chose it as a way of life in high school, and it changed me forever. I am Josué Santiago, 30 years old, and I suffered a traffic accident at the beginning of 2024 that left me with several facial fractures, and I still cannot remember or provide an official account of what happened. These have been very tough months for me, my friends, and especially my family. Although I still struggle to speak and eat easily, I am improving and filled with enthusiasm, taking care of my body each day. Every day, many of us fight for an urban life that doesn’t cost us our lives—a city with care options for everyone, where our mobility choices do not determine our fate. Today, more than ever, I believe that building a city starts with strengthening our connections, creating a city built on tenderness and affection.
🚨 One Mission: Saving Lives on the Street 🚶♀️🚲🚌
#LeySanti is a 📣 citizen-led initiative to create the Law on Mobility and Road Safety for the State of San Luis Potosí, aiming to guarantee the right to safe, accessible, sustainable, and inclusive mobility for all people—especially those who 🚶 walk, 🚴♂️ bike, or 🚌 use public transportation.
The initiative is named after Josué Santiago («Santi»), a 🚴♂️ road safety activist and 🚑 survivor of two traffic crashes. Drawing from his experience, he leads the fight to protect victims and transform mobility in the state.
❗ Why is it important?
San Luis Potosí is the 6th deadliest state in Mexico for road crashes.
In the last 5 years:
🚨 2,529 people have died
🤕 9,000 people have been injured
The streets are not safe for people who walk, bike, or use public transport.
#LeySanti wants to change this reality and build cities where mobility doesn’t cost lives.
📜 What does Ley Santi propose?
🔧 Creation of a State Mobility and Road Safety System based on the Safe System approach
🧑🤝🧑 Formation of Citizen Mobility Committees for active participation
⚖️ Affirmative actions for inclusion and protection of people with disabilities, women, children, and vulnerable groups
💔⚖️ Guarantee the right to full reparation for road crash victims
💰 Establish a Support Fund for Victims and Families
🚸 Promote the Mobility Hierarchy: pedestrians, cyclists, and public transport first
🏙️ Build safe infrastructure: complete streets, bike lanes, safe crossings, and speed control
♿ Recognize for the first time in Mexico the right to personal mobility for people with disabilities 🧑🦽
🌍 A Law with Global Impact
#LeySanti aligns with the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021–2030, led by the United Nations 🇺🇳 and WHO 🏥, aiming to reduce road deaths by 50% by 2030.
⏳ A Legislative Debt in San Luis Potosí
The State Congress was supposed to pass this law by November 2022 📅 to align with the General Law on Mobility and Road Safety.
🕰️ Over 820 days have passed, and the right to safe mobility remains unfulfilled.
2023
Being part of the Citizen Mobility Council of my City
I was selected to join my city’s Mobility Council, being the youngest member. Over the course of a year, we have demanded from the authorities a citizen agenda to save lives on the streets.
PARTNERSHIPS to Accelerate the New Urban Agenda
Elkin Velásquez Monsalve, Regional Representative of UN-Habitat for Latin America and the Caribbean, emphasized the importance of this collaboration. «Through this alliance exercise, we have already positioned ourselves with UN Mexico to support multi-stakeholder efforts aimed at localizing the SDGs in the country,» he stated.
2022
The city’s first bike lane and more than 800 trees were set to be destroyed…
Citizen activism sparked a street mobilization that managed to halt the construction. The controversy surrounding the transformation of Himno Nacional raised issues concerning urban scale in at least three aspects: 1) the right of communities affected by urban projects to be consulted and to participate, 2) the non-regression of victories achieved by cycling advocacy groups, and 3) the collective struggle for environmental protection.
Evaluate and include everyone in the streets
We intervened in the Industrial Zone to improve mobility and road safety.
Through a temporary intervention, we highlighted potential infrastructure changes to enhance mobility in the industrial area.
1,113 children and more than 193 elderly and disabled individuals would benefit from accessible and inclusive infrastructure.
We want safe and adecuate pedestrian crossings
A monumental bicycle
We created the monumental human bicycle in San Luis Potosí. This is how we celebrated World Bicycle Day and demanded road safety.
DERECHOS URBANOS 