The new leader of Westminster City Council has described the Mayor of London's plan to pedestrianise Oxford Street as 'budget' and likened it to online discount platform Temu. Councillor Paul Swaddle has called on Sadiq Khan to sit down with him to develop a plan that actually works for the famous Central London shopping street.
Plan Details and Criticism
An estimated £150 million will be spent on making the busy road car-free between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street. Swaddle, who became leader after the Conservatives regained control of the council from Labour in the local elections, has been a vocal critic of the current proposals. 'At the moment we have a bit of a Temu plan. It's very much budget. And it doesn't deliver on a lot of things that are really needed,' he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
Legal Action Considered
Swaddle has pledged to use any possible legal action against Khan's plans to make Oxford Street vehicle-free. 'We've taken legal advice to see if there is a way of stopping the Mayor. Unfortunately, the capitulation and handing over the road to the Mayor by the last administration is making that very difficult,' he said. He added: 'At the moment, it's a bit of a smoke and mirrors trick by the Mayor, because he's saying, choose this thing that sounds fine, but I won't tell you any other detail.'
Background of the Plan
This is not the first time the Mayor has proposed pedestrianising Oxford Street. A previous plan was blocked by the then-Conservative controlled Westminster City Council in 2018. Earlier this year, Khan used a special mechanism called a Mayoral Development Corporation to push the plans through, but that was under a Labour-run council. The local authority has since returned to Conservative control.
Accessibility and Crime Concerns
Many do not realise that regular motor vehicles are already banned from Oxford Street. The new plan would only change things for buses and taxis. Swaddle cited accessibility as a major concern, noting that Oxford Street Tube Station is not step-free. 'Where do the taxis drop off? Where do deliveries go? How do the bins get emptied? None of these are answered in the public plans that have been shared to date. And that's the really concerning thing,' he said.
Another major concern is crime. Oxford Street currently faces issues with phone-snatching and shop-lifting, as well as a large-scale begging operation founded on human trafficking. 'We all know locally who they are because they have the same sign, they're just such an organised operation that the signs are all in the same handwriting and say exactly the same thing,' Swaddle said. He added: 'At the moment if you go to Oxford Street at midnight, there are buses, there're people getting night buses, people around, you would feel relatively safe. If you were crossing that on your own, well if one of my kids was crossing it on their own in the evening, I'd be concerned.'
Comparison with Carnaby Street
While pedestrianisation has worked elsewhere, such as Carnaby Street which saw a 30 per cent increase in shoppers, Swaddle argues this is not a fair comparison. Carnaby Street was never 'the main east-west street for buses in London,' unlike Oxford Street.
Timeline and Response
If all goes to plan, Oxford Street will become fully pedestrianised by the end of summer 2026. A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: 'The Mayor is moving ahead rapidly with the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street and hopes to see the first section going traffic free by the end of this summer. He looks forward to continuing to work closely with all stakeholders on these plans to create a beautiful pedestrian-friendly public space that restore the nation's high street to its former glory, making Oxford Street a place for all.'
