What Oxford Street will look like if it’s pedestrianised – but locals are not all on board

The plan to ban traffic on London’s Oxford Street ‘to become more like Paris’ is one step closer to becoming a reality – but not every Londoner welcomes the move.

London’s iconic Oxford Street, which attracts around 500,000 shoppers a day, could soon look more like a European promenade without the fumes and sounds of snarling traffic if plans to pedestrianise it go ahead.

The £150,000,000 project is designed to transform Oxford Street into a pedestrian-only area to restore it to its ‘former glory,’ London Mayor Sadiq Khan said.

But shoppers and residents on the famous street this morning told Metro they were not convinced about the vision of Oxford Street without cars and buses – or that the plan will ever happen.

Billy Drew, owner of Golden Union fish and chip shop off Oxford Street, said he would love to be able to use tables and chairs outside but doubts the plan will be successful.

He told Metro: ‘I have lived and worked in the West End for 35 years and this conversation comes up every five minutes.

‘I think it’s a really good idea, you go places like Paris and the atmosphere is amazing – but it’s whether they can logistically do it.

‘I would love to be able to do outdoor dining, but what’s the point? I used to own a pub down the road in SoHo which I had to shut down after I received a noise complaint, who’s to say that won’t happen here.’

When will Oxford Street close for cars?

Traffic is not going to be banned overnight. Now, Londoners are asked to have their say in the plan as the first step.

Metro met up with London Mayor Sadiq Khan at the imposing TfL headquarters to ask why he is so keen to turn Oxford Street into a pedestrianised avenue.

The mayor, blinded by the unusually bright February sun, defended the proposal, saying that he is looking with ‘envy’ at Barcelona and New York and ‘I compare that with the decline of Oxford Street.’

He said: ‘What I’m keen to see is this street revitalised, re-energised and regenerated, and that’s why we’re publishing today plans that in principle talk about pedestrianization, and I’m hoping the response is positive, but I’m hoping to involve as many people as I can to re-energise this part of London.’

‘It should be a street that people can walk down safely.’

Once a top shopping destination, Oxford Street is plagued by an exodus of major retailers while candy stores have popped up on every corner.

Under the proposal, buses, cars, taxis and bikes would be rerouted on parallel streets to ‘restore the street to its former glory, but also be a focal point for retail, for culture and for leisure,’ he said.

John James, who owns Ilona Rose House by Tottenham Court Road station, told Metro the Mayor’s plans will bring people back to Oxford Street to its former glory.

He said: ‘If we can get tables and chairs back out on the street again, it’ll be transformative for the area. When people want to come shopping, they want a nice experience which involves food – not endless vape shops and candy stores.

‘Oxford Street can return to the premium shopping experience it once was.’

He explained walking around with a ‘bustling’ atmosphere can encourage people to stay and spend more money, but the seemingly innumerate vape shops must go.

‘Oxford Street has been left with these big empty buildings after huge brands have decided it is not worth the money staying,’ John said.

‘That’s why the place is filling up with American Candy stores and vape shops, landlords need to fill up their buildings with something.’

But, student Jaye Reddy says she relied on buses to get onto Oxford Street for work. She said although the street would be nicer, it wouldn’t benefit the majority of locals.

She told Metro: ‘I take the bus in and it would be a pain to not have it, let alone if you were disabled or pregnant.

‘If it is thought through properly, it has the potential to make the street a lot nicer. Like ones you see in Europe. But people can’t be left to struggle because of it.’

Others were worried about diversion of buses and black cabs on a stretch of Oxford Street.

Shopper Parineeta Juneja said it would be a shame to lose the ‘iconic’ buses and black cabs that make ‘London for what it is.’

Zamir Dreni, the general secretary of App Drivers & Couriers Union and private taxi driver, said he feared the plan would have an impact on drivers’ income, disabled passengers, tourists and staff working late shifts on Oxford Street ‘who keep it alive.’

‘You are basically telling anyone who is less able that you’re not welcome here. You’re telling them you have to walk, but tell that to someone in a wheelchair,’ he told Metro.

Emma Vogelmann, the head of policy at Transport for All group campaigning for disabled people, said the pedestrianisation could be ‘great’ for those who use a cane or a guide dog and benefit from more space.

However, it could make Oxford Street ‘unusable’ for some disabled people. She told Metro: ‘It is too long for many disabled people to walk or wheel without feeling exhausted, and the uneven road service would need to be improved too.’

The mayor said there would be ‘opportunities’ for black cab drop off points nearby, but Dreni argued that designated pick up points ‘would not work.’

‘Why make it hard for people who work there day and night, who keep it alive? You are punishing the vulnerable, just so that we look trendy? What’s the trend about? They keep every pub and bar alive.’

‘I’m not going to tell someone with their hands full of shopping or who cannot walk “come and find me here.” Oxford Street is a long road.

‘You are just shutting the whole thing down and that’s unacceptable, that cannot be right.

He said buses, taxis, private hires and registered disabled vehicles ‘should be allowed’ as a ‘middle ground.’

‘But don’t stop all access,’ he added.

Caroline Russell, a Green Party London Assembly member, argued that the pedestrianisation is ‘the best way forward’ and not a ‘place where buses are stuck idling in traffic.’

Has the Mayor tried to pedestrianise Oxford Street before?

This is not the first time the mayor’s office has attempted to clear cars of Oxford Street – a previous attempt was blocked by then-Conservative-run Westminster City Council in 2018.

The council said there was a lack of community support, which Khan said at the time was a ‘betrayal to Londoners’.

His plans included bringing roads up to pavement level and re-routing buses, but then council leader Nickie Aiken refused to get on board.

Former mayor Boris Johnson told businesses in 2016 he was open to considering banning buses and cars on parts of the street, but ruled out a full pedestrianisation.

All candidates in the 2016 mayoral election backed the idea of pedestrianising it.

Londoners have until May 2 to have their say on the public consultation on the potential pedestrianisation and to create a Mayoral Development Corporation that would oversee the transformation.

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