Cyclists run amok through Sadiq Khan's 'pedestrian-only' Oxford Street while security guards watch on helplessly
The scene on Oxford Street, where crepe shop worker Mohammed Essalhi warned the pedestrianisation scheme would prove an overall negative for businesses inside the zone.A cyclist blasts past a security guard standing with arms outstretched at the bollards on Oxford Street, as riders were filmed mocking helpless guards unable to enforce the pedestrianisation ban.A cyclist rides along Oxford Street despite the pedestrianisation ban, which carries a £160 fine for those caught cycling in the zone.Cyclists ride through Oxford Street shoppers, as cab driver Bahrain Mujagata, 21, said traffic on Regent Street left him "sitting through it" with nowhere else to go.Young men throwing rocks at people on Oxford Street during half-term. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan's pedestrianisation scheme has drawn warnings from crepe shop worker Mohammed Essalhi that it will prove an overall…Sadiq Khan, whose pedestrianisation scheme launched on Monday, has been told by black cab drivers that knock-on congestion is crippling their working day.
Sadiq Khan's headline Oxford Street pedestrianisation project has descended into chaos in its opening days, with cyclists riding freely through the new zone while security guards look on, powerless to intervene. Taxi drivers report that journeys through central London are now running up to 20 minutes late as displaced traffic backs up onto neighbouring streets. Khan had described the closure as 'a truly momentous occasion for the capital.'
Footage captures dozens of cyclists, many of them teenagers, weaving at speed through alarmed shoppers while a security guard stands at the bollards with arms outstretched, unable to act.
Black-cab driver Bahrain Mujagata, 21, said northbound Regent Street has ground to a standstill, with buses, cycle lanes and a central reservation leaving drivers with no room to manoeuvre.
A worker at a crepe shop inside the pedestrianised zone cautioned that the scheme will turn out to be 'an overall negative for businesses,' directly contradicting the upbeat promises Khan made when promoting it.
