Oxford Street to ban traffic by 'end of summer'

The mayor of London says he has instructed his team to "work at pace" to ban traffic from of Oxford Street "as quickly as possible".

The central London shopping street will be pedestrianised from Orchard Street (past Selfridges) to Great Portland Street (past Ikea), under plans formally approved last week.

Sir Sadiq Khan said work to create a traffic-free zone could start straight away, with the aim of completing the scheme by the end of the summer.

The scheme was approved only after the mayor obtained government permission to assume planning powers, following Westminster City Council's rejection of the plans.

Under the plans, the west stretch of Oxford Street will be closed to private motorised vehicles, buses, taxis and private hire vehicles, cycles, scooters and pedicabs.

Once the changes are made, the mayor wants to create a new events space from this year.

There are also plans for more trees and greenery and new rest areas for people to sit down and for children to play.

Sir Sadiq said safety would be a "priority", with CCTV, extra signage and lighting to be installed.

"Following strong support from Londoners and businesses, I've asked the team to move at pace with plans to pedestrianise Oxford Street this summer so we can deliver a vibrant, world-class, accessible destination," Sir Sadiq said.

"I want this stretch of Oxford Street to be transformed into a pedestrian plaza – a space designed to host world-class events, from sport to culture and fashion, as well as exciting new retail and leisure experiences," he added.

The scheme was designed to ensure emergency services could access the street at all times and servicing vehicles could enter the traffic-free area overnight, City Hall said.

Alex Williams, chief customer and strategy officer at Transport for London, said: "In the coming months, we'll work to implement changes to the roads around Oxford Street to allow for proposed bus changes to be implemented.

"We'll also begin work along Oxford Street to prepare the road for pedestrianisation."

Sir Sadiq himself approved the scheme following the creation of a Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC).

This was approved by the current government and required new legislation to allow the mayor planning powers that were previously held by the local authority.

Westminster City Council previously turned down the plans, citing opposition from local residents.

The mayor said 2,700 people responded to a public consultation, with the majority of respondents in favour of the pedestrianisation plans.

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