London mayor says traffic ban trial is start of ‘fightback to rescue Oxford Street’

Sadiq Khan hails one-day closure of half-mile stretch to traffic as ‘glimpse to what the future could be like’

The mayor of London has said a one-day trial banning traffic from part of Oxford Street marks “the day the fightback began to rescue this street”.

Sadiq Khan visited the street, where vehicles were prohibited from accessing a half-mile stretch of the road from Oxford Circus to Orchard Street between noon and 8pm on Sunday for the event called This is Oxford Street.

Speaking to the PA Media news agency, the mayor said Oxford Street had been “wonderful” in the past. “But the reality is, it has been in decline for some time,” he said.

“I’d call it managed decline. You’ve seen a situation where more and more people are shopping online or going to out-of-town centres, shopping centres, high-profile shops have left Oxford Street, and the pandemic was a real body blow to this street.