A group of Philly residents had a revelation over the papal weekend. What was supposed to be a burden of streets closed and limited public transit turned into a blessing for some.

Those who enjoy a car-free Philly are asking Democratic mayoral nominee Jim Kenny to study a plan to close Center City to traffic for three weekends during the summer.

The group, Open Streets PHL, has created a petition at Change.org, which garnered more than 2,300 signatures in a day and a half. Open Streets' Facebook and Twitter accounts also gained thousands of followers in a short window of time.

¨Thousands of us fell in love with the open streets of Philadelphia this weekend. But the Pope's departure doesn't have to be the end of this story,¨ said the petition.

This is what they aim to do:

“Open Streets PHL will be focused on fun for residents rather than moving a million people from around the world through a high-security zone. Lots of Center City businesses saw their sales dip over the Papal Festival weekend; we need to include those businesses in planning this from the jump. We’re confident Open Streets can be an opportunity for neighborhood businesses to meet new customers and generate new business.”

You can sign the petition here.