Storgatan is part of the project Framtidsgatan, which is Umeå municipality's initiative to make the streets more pleasant. Based on residents' views and ideas, the street has been rebuilt with simpler measures and minor renovations.
– Today, many people experience the street as dark and that it ends at Västra esplanaden, they have wanted a cycle path from the West of town to the city center, says Katarina Gref.
Fewer lanes for motorists
In the air, the street will be illuminated by a starry sky. But for motorists, the realignment means that one lane in each direction has been removed.
– This is in line with the municipality's ambition to increase accessibility for pedestrians and cyclists, now we do it in a simple and relatively cheap way.
The project Framtidsgatan is linked to the research project Smart streets and is funded by Vinnova, the Swedish Agency for Innovation Systems. In addition, there are the municipality's own costs for the work.
Hear what some Umeå residents think about the renovation and see what changes the municipality has made, in the clip.