Almost a kilometre of London's Oxford Street became traffic-free on Monday 26 October 2026, in the first phase of a long-debated plan to remake the capital's busiest shopping street. The stretch between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street is now closed to cars, buses, taxis, private hire vehicles, bicycles, scooters and pedicabs.

What changes on the street

Emergency vehicles keep access at all times, and deliveries and servicing are allowed overnight, between midnight and 7am. Bus routes have been diverted to neighbouring streets, with new stops a few hundred metres from the pedestrian zone, and Transport for London is to monitor how traffic copes on the diversions. Oxford Street still draws around half a million visitors a day, according to the mayor's office, with shoppers moving between retailers including Selfridges, Zara and John Lewis.

A decade in the making

London Mayor Sadiq Khan called the opening a momentous day for London and for Oxford Street, saying it marked a new era for the street. Pedestrianisation had been discussed for more than a decade, and the current scheme is led by the Oxford Street Development Corporation, created by the mayor's office. A public consultation found majority support, with the mayor's office putting support at around two-thirds of respondents. Minimal construction will take place in the run-up to Christmas, with plans for 2027 including more than 50 new trees, 100 seats, two public squares, rest areas and better signage and lighting.

Sources: Associated Press; Reuters, 26 October 2026.