Currently, Oxford Street is restricted to buses and taxis only from 07:00 – 19:00, Monday to Saturday.

Closing Oxford Street to day time traffic without understanding or dealing with the resulting overflow into adjacent areas is NOT AN OPTION  

Closing Oxford Street whilst protecting surrounding areas from traffic overflow is AN UNACHIEVABLE ASPIRATION

Oxford Street is an A road; it is the A40.

Closing Oxford Street to achieve transformation objectives IS NOT NECESSARY

1. BUSES - the remaining 70 buses per hour can't be accommodated through the surrounding areas.  WIGMORE STREET – MORTIMER STREET- IS NOT AN ACCEPTABLE ALTERNATIVE – they can not take the extra congestion, also there are no places where bus stops could be sited without causing even more congestion.

2. TAXIS- NEGLECTING to recognise that taxis if banned from Oxford Street will simply use all the adjacent streets.

3. DELIVERIES- IGNORING provision for the servicing of existing shops on Oxford Street 30 per cent of which have no rear access – so this could only be achieved by comprehensively lifting restrictions on night time deliveries which would have a devastating effect and be totally unacceptable to the larger residential population in the immediate and wider surrounding areas- the actual residential population on Oxford Street is very small, but the areas surrounding Oxford Street are home to in excess of 50,000 residents.

1. AIR QUALITY

A. Buses- reduce numbers and change rest to fully zero emission on a strict timetable.

B. Taxis- bring forward date for emission compliant taxis- meantime TfL could regulate the number that use Oxford Street, by a number of methods, one could be based on emissions- only low emission vehicles would be permitted after a certain date.

C. Delivery Vehicles- impose charges for the more polluting vehicles, look at reduction in numbers through freight consolidation etc.

D. Vehicle Idling- increases pollution- stricter enforcement on this necessary.

2. PEDESTRIAN COMFORT and SAFETY

A. Pavement Widening- pedestrian accidents are mainly caused by buses, but moving the buses, just moves the accidents. Widening pavements could help confront the problem, not simply send it elsewhere.

B. Pavement clutter- surplus signage, badly positioned street furniture, all impede pedestrian access and need to be reviewed, changed, improved and removed entirely in some cases.

C. Pedestrian crossings- could be increased and re-balanced to give pedestrians more time to cross junctions. Consider diagonal pavement crossings at some other junctions as at Oxford Circus. In tandem with this consider enforcement and penalties for crossing at non-designated areas.

D. Tube Access- consider introducing step-free access at Marble Arch and Oxford Circus prior to any further curtailment of public transport.

E. Westminster Walking Strategy- should be implemented – particularly on Wigmore Street- Mortimer Street.

F. Traffic free days- to allow for full closure of Oxford Street on certain named days.

G. Construction works- review and rationalise road capacity and pavement capacity reduced by closures caused by construction works of all kinds.

3. PUBLIC REALM

A. Build a central reservation- on Oxford Street West, like Regent Street and Oxford Street East.

B. Lack of public toilets- with the obvious consequences. New developments must make provisions for these.

C Improved public spaces- opportunities for greening and quiet areas, improvement of existing, e.g. Return Hanover Square to a functioning Square. Resist opportunities for using them as walk through areas, protect existing trees on them.

D. Tree planting- along both sides of the street, although this would affect pavement width.

E. Art- look at further opportunities for public art.

F. Heritage- encourage shopkeepers to improve their shopfronts and exteriors generally, the older buildings to better reflect their heritage, discourage bland plastic signs which tend to give cheap and nasty appearance.

4. IMPROVED REGULATIONS and ENFORCEMENT

A. Enforcement of banned traffic- WCC have not been prosecuting banned vehicles from using Oxford Street, as a result there is a certain amount of illegal traffic using it, which could be removed – needs investment in cameras.

B. Buskers and Street Traders- proper and more effective control is needed, their activities often narrow the pavements at the busiest places, e.g. in front of the station entrances and exits

C. Pedi-cabs- need to banned or strictly regulated, they are a significant source of congestion on Oxford Street.

D. Deliveries- 30% of shops need access for deliveries directly from Oxford Street- freight consolidation should be considered as it has been in Regent Street to reduce number of vehicles servicing shops.

E. Sunday free parking- This simply encourages people to drive in, introduces more congestion and clutter- this should be reviewed urgently.

NONE OF THE ABOVE NEED CLOSURE TO IMPLEMENT

1. GREATER PUBLIC SAFETY- in allowing emergency services easier access to Oxford Street (surrounding congestion caused by its closure will greatly impede this). Less opportunity for terrorist attacks with vehicles – as we have seen pedestrian only streets are more open to this threat.

2. CONTROL AND ENFORCEMENT- i.e. busking and street performers- WCC already find this very difficult to control – how much more so when you have a Trafalgar Square type environment attracting huge numbers of street entertainers and the criminal element that goes with them.

3. SAFEGUARD TRADING- traffic is lifeblood for shops in a long street such as Oxford Street, it is essential to have transport to get to and from, for the old, the disabled, for those with heavy shopping, it is needed for deliveries, and very convenient for the rest.

We thought NWEC had learned the lesson that increased footfall is very different from generating increased sales, from the failure of traffic free days to generate meaningful increases in revenue. Economically if Oxford Street is closed it is quite likely that many who previously travelled to it to actually shop will be put off, not least by the pollution and congestion getting there, and will prefer the nearby alternatives, such as Brent Cross, and the Westfield Centres at Shepherds Bush and Stratford.

Oxford Street far from seeing increases, could actually lose revenue. Indeed those they are in most danger of driving away are the highest spending demographic- do they really think that these people will be willing to sit in Taxis trying to get through the congestion and pollution in the surrounding areas only to be told that they will need to get out and walk for the final half mile?

4. PROTECTION OF SURROUNDING AREAS- from additional pollution and congestion caused by traffic displaced from Oxford Street.

5. ELIZABETH LINE- was due to open in 2018 (it was the main argument last time around   – the assumption was that this would decant large extra numbers into Oxford Street- but this was a mere assumption without proper research.  The actual picture to very different.  The increase in pedestrians is at Tottenham Court Road Station on the Eastern end of Oxford Street and this is not planned to be pedestrianised despite it now handling more people than Oxford Circus now does. 

6. LESS CRIME- Night-time safety due to traffic flow – crime enforcement, much easier on a street with traffic, less opportunities for crime on a street with traffic, less shelter spots, more likelihood of being seen.

CHANGES THAT COULD IMPROVE SURROUNDING AREAS WHILE KEEPING OXFORD STREET OPEN:

Air monitoring on surrounding streets- poor air quality- it is not only Oxford Street that has poor air quality, all the surrounding areas regularly exceed EU guidelines both on NoX emission and particulate matter (PM). We need a baseline study now to get better statistics on pollution hotspots around the area. We are taking steps to commence monitoring NoX emissions in the area around Oxford Street in order to find out more about this.

Change buses- to fully zero emission.

Bring forward emission controls- on all diesel vehicles, including taxis.

Open side streets- closed by Crossrail works.

Remove build-out at Oxford Circus- to allow bus lane southbound (current build out used by buskers) removing the pinch point this has introduced which causes increased congestion and pollution from queuing traffic in Upper Regent Street.

Consider designated cycle lanes- for cyclists on streets parallel with Oxford Street.

Wigmore Street (east) convert to two way- to ease flow of traffic and stop unnecessary circuitous journeys.

Public spaces- look at opportunities for improved public spaces in the area

Taxi touting- generates a considerable amount of unnecessary milage and hence more pollution – in addition private hire pay no congestion charge – this should be reviewed.