The 2020 plan for Oxford Street

Sadiq Khan has made big plans to tackle London’s air pollution and his office has confirmed that Oxford Street will be pedestrianised by 2020.

At the moment cars are banned from the street between 07:00 and 19:00 Monday to Saturday however the new plans ban all traffic including buses and taxis.

The new plans look to ban traffic along Oxford Street from Tottenham Court Road down to Marble Arch. They are looking to implement the ban in stages starting on the eastern section between Tottenham Court Road and Oxford Circus.

Valerie Shawcross, London’s deputy mayor for transport has stated that busses would be re-routed however did not go into detail on what plans they are looking to put into place.

Siwan Puw, policy manager at the London Chambers of Commerce, said: “The huge increase in footfall will require clear planning to maximise pedestrian safety and minimise disruption to businesses.

“Doing it in stages certainly has its advantages in that it means trading will continue more easily and any issues can be ironed out as we go along.”

A spokesman added that the project will contribute to the mayor’s aim of improving air quality and to make Oxford Street “a far safer and more pleasant place to live”