‘You can walk in the road!’: Inside Oxford Street’s first day without traffic
As the first phase of the mayor's Oxford Street pedestrianisation project began, Anna Moloney rushed to Selfridges to soak up the scene.
On the first day of Oxford Street's pedestrianisation, the mood amongst shoppers was decidedly celebratory. Anna Moloney, a City AM deputy comment and features editor, rushed to Selfridges to experience the new atmosphere. Visitors snapped photos in front of the bollards and even interrupted security workers to take pictures together.
Pepe Velo, a wine importer from Spain, expressed his belief that the initiative was a great one, despite the challenges of navigating the pedestrianised zone with two pavements. Young artist Daniel Te was also impressed by the car-free scene and mentioned that he would be more likely to visit Oxford Street now. However, there were some concerns regarding the change, such as the need for additional security measures to mitigate hostile vehicle threats and the inconvenience for cyclists and taxi drivers.
The Oxford Street transformation, while praised for its potential to rejuvenate the city's flagship high street, still has some way to go before fully realizing its vision.
Written by urgent.news from City AM's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
