As has been the case in holidays past, downtown Reykjavík will be closed to car traffic through Advent, in the hopes of boosting shopping.
RÚV reports that the streets closed to car traffic from December 13 until Christmas Eve are the same streets that are normally closed in the summer: Laugavegur from Vatnsstígur to Þingholtstræti; Skólavörðustígur from Bergstaðastræti to Laugavegur; and further west, Austurstræti, Veltusund, Vallarstræti and Pósthússtræti.
The dates of the street closings, incidentally, coincide with the days that many downtown shops will be open longer. As such, the plan is likely at least in part initiated to encourage pedestrians to stroll into shops and make more holiday purchases.
The car traffic closings are not round the clock, either. These streets will be open from 7:00 to 16:00 on workdays, and from 7:00 to 11:00 on weekends, in order to provide easy access to delivery trucks bringing more goods for sale to downtown shops.
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