Mayor to move ahead with Oxford Street traffic ban

The mayor's plan involves the diversion of 16 bus routes that use Oxford Street

Plans to pedestrianise parts of Oxford Street will move forward "as quickly as possible", the mayor of London has said.

City Hall claims two thirds of people support the principle of banning traffic on one of the world's busiest streets, with Sir Sadiq Khan adding that "urgent action is needed to give our nation's high street a new lease of life".

Vehicles would be banned from a 0.7-mile (1.1km) stretch between Oxford Circus and Marble Arch, with further potential changes towards Tottenham Court Road.

Adam Hug, Westminster City Council's Labour leader, said the plan "was not the council's preferred outcome" but "it is now important for Oxford Street's future to move forward together".

The red lines show the proposed mayoral development area

Detailed proposals for traffic on Oxford Street, which sees an average of half a million visitors each day, will be consulted on later this year.

The mayor's latest proposals depend on him obtaining permission from Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner in her role as secretary of state for housing, communities and local government to establish a new mayoral development corporation, which would provide planning powers.

Ms Rayner posted on X: "Proud to support the mayor of London in delivering this bold and ambitious vision to breathe new life into Oxford Street.

"We want to see it thrive - for tourists and Londoners alike."

'Elephant in the room'

Tim Lord, chair of the Soho Society, said key questions remained unanswered, including about "traffic diversion and the impact of moving 16 bus routes into narrow, congested one-way streets in Marylebone and Fitzrovia".

He said: "No convincing plan has ever been presented; London is already a very slow city and will get worse.

"The elephant in the room is that Oxford Street's problems are to do with the quality and attractiveness of the retail offering, which is diminished by rents which are too high and which only ever increase."

He added that there were questions about bicycles and "equality of access for bus and taxi users" and "people with kids and heavy shopping or with mobility restrictions".

Only one of these forms of transport would be permitted

A previous consultation showed support for the scheme from local business owners (19%) and residents (34%) lagged behind visitors (62%).

In 2018, Westminster City Council - then led by the Conservatives - blocked the mayor's plans to pedestrianise the street, citing a lack of support from residents.

In 2022, the same council was widely mocked for a doomed attempt to entice visitors back to the area with the Marble Arch Mound, which opened incomplete, over budget and led to resignations.

Sir Sadiq said he was "impatient for progress" over his "ambitious" plans and that residents were "fed up with a managed decline".

He said: "We want to rejuvenate Oxford Street; establish it as a global leader for shopping, leisure and outdoor events with a world-class, accessible, pedestrianised avenue.

"This will help to attract more international visitors and act as a magnet for new investment and job creation, driving growth and economic prosperity for decades to come."

'Roared back to life'

Steve McNamara, general secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, said the plans would create "chaos" and "hadn't been thought out".

He said: "We are the only 100% disability transport access to and from Oxford Street and now they're going to exclude us.

"London is already Europe's most congested city, we're the fifth-most congested city in the world and I'm beginning to think City Hall is trying to get us to number one."

Mr Hug said: "Since the mayor's new approach was made public last autumn, Westminster has worked pragmatically and productively with the Greater London Authority to ensure that the plan for Oxford Street more closely meets the needs of businesses, visitors and residents.

"Since 2022, Oxford Street has roared back to life after the pandemic. Such is the level of retail confidence that existing brands have spent £118m refitting their stores in the last 12 months alone, according to Savills."

City Hall Conservative Alessandro Georgiou AM said: "We are concerned that the mayor is driving coach and horses through the plan drawn up by Westminster Conservatives, which had the popular support of residents and businesses, in order to secure himself even a shred of a positive legacy after last week's disastrous Spending Review.

"The mayor's polling claims to show how strongly Londoners feel about this issue, but he has yet to make a cogent case for why he needs to take power away from local councils in order to achieve this rather than working with them.

"We will continue to hold the mayor to account on his empty proposals, and encourage him to be clearer with the public about the impacts on congestion, public safety and disabled access, as well as how much his plans will cost."

Analysis

By Tom Edwards, BBC London Transport Correspondent

Considering it is a top shopping destination, Oxford Street has high collision and pollution rates.

The latest attempt to change it is to remove it from local council control and create a development corporation, making it easier for planning decisions like pedestrianisation.

But there are many unanswered questions - like 'where will all the buses go?'

And the move does raise questions about local democracy and who should be making decisions like this.

Should it be local councils, or does it need a more strategic wider vision? Is the mayor overstepping the mark - or is he being pragmatic?

The plan is for the mayor to be in charge before next summer's local council elections, where the issue would be front and centre in the surrounding wards.