Plans from London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan to part-pedestrianise Oxford Street have been described by residents as “senseless” and a “vanity project”.
They told a London Assembly inquiry that the mayor had overstated the need for a radical overhaul of the famous high street in central London.
They also expressed concern at the lack of information provided by the mayor about what the pedestrianisation will look like, in particular on how buses would be re-routed away from Oxford Street.
A “field trip” to the area was held on Wednesday morning by the assembly’s planning committee to inform its response to Sir Sadiq’s consultation on establishing a mayoral development corporation to gain control over Oxford Street and the surrounding area from Westminster council and Camden council.
Andrew Boff, the Tory planning committee chair, said the 25-member cross-party assembly, which he also chairs, had the power to reject Sir Sadiq’s proposal to establish a mayoral development corporation.
“He needs to bring an awful lot more detail about the actual pedestrianisation,” Mr Boff said.
“It’s one of those things that sounds very easy until you look at the challenges. Where are the buses going to go? Why are cyclists going to be banned from using Oxford Street?
“Will it be a safe environment when pedestrianised, when we know that there’s 40,000 crimes reported on this street every year? These are the kind of details we need from the mayor before we reach our conclusions.”
Michael Bolt, honorary secretary of the Marylebone Association, said the “organic, ongoing improvement” of Oxford Street that began pre-pandemic and has seen the pavements widened and fewer buses had resulted in a “pretty satisfactory balance” between the needs of pedestrians, residents and businesses.
Air quality had also improved due to the introduction of hybrid buses and zero emission capable black taxis. “It’s yesterday’s battle,” Mr Bolt told The Standard.
“A great deal has been done over a great number of years to achieve organically the position we are now in. This is what is often not recognised – that things are constantly changing.
“Wigmore Street has got approximately three times as much traffic on it as Oxford Street has. Quite often it is tail to tail.
“We have a situation where we have a free run for buses and taxis down Oxford Street, which the mayor proposes to close, to stuff all those down a street that is already three times as crowded as Oxford Street.
“The whole thing seems senseless, because what we have at the moment is working. What is proposed will only work for the big organisations, the big business, that benefit from piazza-fication.
“The ultimate aim is to create a sort of piazza effect of al fresco dining, open air events - the sort of thing that large corporations like because it is a driver of footfall to the area, and it involved privatisation of the public realm.”
Sir Sadiq believes the proposed changes to Oxford Street would boost it as a shopping and visitor destination and make it safer and more pleasant for pedestrians.
Precise details of how traffic that currently uses Oxford Street would be re-routed is yet to be published by Transport for London.
However, several residents warned there was a risk of creating new dangers rather than reducing road danger.
Tim Lord, of the Soho Society, said many collisions happened on corners, when buses turned. “With this pedestrianisation scheme, you will have more buses turning than you have now,” he said.
He said there was a lack of information about the mayor’s plans. “It’s not right to take powers without clarity on what is being proposed,” he said.
“Wigmore Street doesn’t really have any buses on it – it just has normal traffic. If you put buses on it then it will congest.
“I live quite near Regent Street and you can see it every day – that [road] goes really slowly. It can take an hour from the BBC to Piccadilly Circus. We just want our city to work.
“I think buses are really convenient for a lot of people who don’t want to take the Tube.
“The things that people are concerned about on Oxford Street are safety and security, having their phones nicked, the lack of somewhere to sit and poor retail diversity.
“If you want to get that right you need to look at the level of commercial rent and ask: is that working in the public interest?”
Mike Dunn, a Mayfair resident who previously stood as an anti-pedestrianisation candidate in elections to Westminster council, said the changes were “unnecessary”.
He said: “The problems that Oxford Street faced traffic-wise a few years ago have more or less been resolved.
“The re-routing of some of the buses and the cancellation of others has led to a situation where now, in general terms, traffic flows pretty smoothly down Oxford Street.”
Asked why he believed Sir Sadiq was pursuing the proposals, Mr Dunn said: “I think it is a vanity project.
“I would suggest that the assembly tell him: ‘Cobbler, stick to your last.’ I think that he has enough on his plate at the moment with crime, with traffic, that he doesn’t need to be expanding his horizons into pedestrianisation of Oxford Street and taking over licensing policy for Westminster and Camden.”
Hina Bokhari, Lib-Dem group leader on the London Assembly, said: “I have heard a lot of concern.
“I think it’s right for these groups to be heard. There is concern because they feel there is a lack of consultation and engagement.
“I think the mayor has to do a lot more work when it comes to how he approaches the next steps towards the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street.
“We can’t do it without building trust or having transparency and openness. Those are the things I’m really worried about right now.
“I don’t want to go forward if I don’t feel as if people aren’t going to be happy about the way it is being done. The process has to be right.
“We are really keen to see Oxford Street becoming a vibrant street. We want Oxford Street to be inviting, to be environmentally friendly, to thrive. That lack of engagement is the problem.”
Caroline Russell, a Green party member of the assembly, said Oxford Street needed to change.
“If it was pedestrianised and had more green, more seating, more toilets it could become a place that people wanted to visit and wanted to hang out in,” she said.
“At the moment, there is no information from the mayor about what the plans are for the MDC [mayoral development corporation].
“The lack of information and the lack of plans is leading people to be worried about all sorts of details. Without that information, we don’t know if those fears are founded or not.
“It could be a really incredible asset for London. I don’t think the status quo is good enough. I think London can do so much better.”
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “The Mayor has always been clear that Oxford Street is an area of critical national economic importance, contributing billions to London's economy.
“But there is no doubt that it has suffered in recent years due to a combination of the pandemic, the growth of online shopping and other factors, and urgent action is needed to give Oxford Street a new lease of life. That's why a revitalised Oxford Street would increase visitor numbers, create new jobs, and boost retail and growth for London and the rest of the UK.
“The Mayor is working closely with local businesses, residents, and local councils whilst he consults on proposals to pedestrianise Oxford Street and create a Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC), which would super-charge regeneration and unlock the potential of Oxford Street as we continue to build a better London for everyone. Sadiq encourages everyone to respond to the public consultation he launched in February by 2 May.”
