For the eighth year running, several downtown streets will, in whole or in part, be closed to car traffic through the summer.
In an announcement from the City of Reykjavík, city council details that the following streets will be open solely for pedestrians and bicycles:
Laugavegur and Bankastræti, from Klapparstígur to Þingholtsstræti.
Skólavörðustígur between Bergstaðastræti and Laugavegur.
Pósthússtræti between Kirkjustræti and Hafnarstræti.
Austurstræti along with Veltusund and Vallarstræti.
These streets will be open for delivery trucks to bring wares to downtown shops from 7:00 to 11:00 during workdays, and from 8:00 to 11:00 on Saturdays. Otherwise, no vehicles will be permitted except bicycles on these streets from now until October 1.
Closing the street to car traffic for part of the summer began in 2011. At that time, the closure only lasted from July 1 to August 1.
Most merchants on the street have been happy with the idea, saying that it has encouraged an increase in walk-ins at their stores. Some merchants, though, expressed dissatisfaction with the idea, namely in terms of how it affects parking—despite these closings meaning the loss of only 17 parking spaces.
Furthermore, City Council points out that there are some 1,144 parking spaces downtown, in addition to an extra 250 parking spots in the basement of Hafnartorg and 545 spaces at Harpa.
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