Sadiq Khan is to ban traffic from Oxford Street on Monday as he vows to clear out 'dross' sweet shops

Westminster Council has cautioned that shutting Oxford Street to traffic will push vehicles onto smaller side streets across the West End. Buses, taxis, cyclists, scooters and pedicabs will be rerouted away from the stretch of road, nearly a kilometre long, running between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street. Deliveries will be limited to the window between midnight and 7am. Mayor Sadiq Khan says the date, falling just before the Christmas trading period, will 'go down in history'.

Khan blames the street's years of decline on online shopping, out-of-town malls and the pandemic.

TfL plans to bring the roadway up to pavement level, with the first sections due for completion by spring 2027.

Oxford Street accounts for around £3.1bn in annual spending, yet the street continues to be blighted by vacant shopfronts and phone snatching.