Luleå

Luleå Municipality is located in a subarctic region, resulting in long, cold winters with heavy snowfall. During periods of intense snowfall or when temperatures fluctuate around the freezing point, a range of mobility problems arise for citizens who want to travel, or are already travelling, using soft mobility options such as walking and cycling. 

Heavy snowfall results in roads being uneven, difficult to pass or covered in deep tracks. Temperature shifts create slippery surfaces as gravel and sand melt into the ice and then re-freeze, losing their anti-slip function. These conditions disproportionately affect pedestrians and cyclists and lead to a significant drop in soft-mobility travel during winter.   

The problems are currently addressed through regular winter road maintenance that is carried out by the municipality and by the state transport authority “Trafikverket”. However, it remains hard for citizens to know when, where and by which routes they can travel safely, as the winter maintenance workers are not able to provide constant maintenance on the whole road network continuously. During heavy snowfall, even a newly ploughed road may be deemed hard to navigate for a cyclist. 

To support soft mobility during winter, reliable and frequently updated information about current road conditions is essential. At present, this information is scattered across different sources, difficult to access, and not presented in a way that helps citizens make informed travel decisions.  

The municipality is currently working towards multiple goals relating to lowering emissions, maintaining a good level of winter road maintenance and increasing the amount of soft mobility.  Addressing the lack of accessible, up-to-date winter road-condition information is a crucial step in achieving these goals. 

Area: the urban area of Luleå Municipality

DESIRED SITUATION

• The citizens of Luleå Municipality are provided with clear and easy-to-understand information about current weather, maintenance activities, and road conditions that affect their ability to travel by foot or bicycle. 

• Citizens receive guidance on when, how, and along which routes they should travel to make their winter journeys as safe and convenient as possible. 

• Citizens’ trust in soft mobility during winter increases, making walking and cycling a more viable and attractive option.  

• The number of accidents and reports related to winter soft-mobility travel decreases in proportion to the number of trips taken. 

• There is an increased number of trips utilizing soft mobility options in relation to motorised trips  

Progress toward Luleå’s goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2040 is supported by reducing wintertime emissions through increased soft-mobility travel.