Sadiq Khan and Zac Goldsmith both committed to the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street in order to cut pollution and congestion.
They made their promises during last night’s Evening Standard mayoral hustings after a question from the New West End Company, which runs a Business Improvement District to improve the area around Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street.
Mr Khan told the audience: “From Marble Arch to Tottenham Road, you could have squares and boulevards and make it really appealing for people. Crossrail will help with that. A productive Oxford Street does a huge amount of benefit for the rest of London.”
Mr Goldsmith said: “I sense from talking to businesses, residents and the council — who have been historically resistant to the idea of attacking Oxford street — there is an appetite for something radical. So I think we can and should, and I have committed to pedestrianise Oxford Street and I have committed to working with the councils and TfL to ensure the buses then don’t have to use the residential streets around Oxford Street.”
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Liberal Democrat candidate Caroline Pidgeon also committed to banning vehicles from Oxford Street and added that Sunday opening hours for shops should be relaxed.
A 2014 study by David Carslaw, an air quality scientist at King’s College London, showed Oxford Street had the worst levels of nitrogen dioxide air pollution in the world.
In 2015, pollution in Oxford Street breached the legal EU limit for the whole year after just four days.