Curitiba's Bondinho da Leitura hits near‑10,000 visitors in July

In July 2026 the Bondinho da Leitura, a public library housed in a historic train car in downtown Curitiba, Brazil, recorded almost 10,000 visitors – the highest traffic of the year, averaging about 300 people per day. This marked a sharp rise from June’s 3,908 visitors. Many of the guests were tourists; on a typical morning only three of eight people present were locals. Administrator Gilberto Carlos Pereira said visitors come to photograph, film, explore the shelves, read, obtain library cards and borrow from the 3,500‑volume collection. The library is part of the Fundação Cultural de Curitiba’s network of 16 Casas da Leitura. It operates weekdays 9‑18, Saturdays 10‑14, and also during the municipal “Domingo no Centro” program, which attracted about 1,000 people in four hours during a recent geek‑themed event. Tourists such as Michele Metz from Porto Alegre and families from Rio Grande do Sul visited, sometimes returning due to crowds. "Decidimos voltar hoje e achei muito bacana aqui dentro, saber que é uma biblioteca pública, de fácil acesso e que fica no meio da cidade," Michele said.