The Government has rejected Westminster Council’s last-minute attempt to delay Sadiq Khan’s £150 million Oxford Street pedestrianisation scheme, with traffic set to be banned from part of the shopping street by the end of October.
According to the London Standard, Westminster Council wrote to ministers last week calling for Transport for London (TfL) to carry out a full environmental impact assessment before the scheme goes ahead.
The council raised concerns that removing traffic from Oxford Street could increase noise and air pollution on surrounding roads, while arguing that the project was being rushed through without standard checks to assess its wider impact.
However, the Government rejected the request on Friday, allowing work on the scheme to continue.
Deputy council leader Tim Barnes said the council was “extremely disappointed” by the decision, warning that rushing the project to meet the Mayor’s deadline could be “a disaster for local people, businesses and visitors”.
The council has also questioned how traffic, noise and air quality will be managed once the changes are introduced. Barnes said that “important questions” around managing traffic, noise and air quality “all sit unanswered”, adding that London deserves “a world class shopping district” but he was concerned the city was heading for “an unmanaged mess”.
TfL has said it submitted an environmental impact assessment screening opinion to the Government “in accordance with the legal requirements”.
The latest development follows Khan’s official approval of the pedestrianisation plans in February. The £150 million scheme forms part of his strategy to revitalise Oxford Street, with the proposals designed to improve the visitor experience and create space for leisure opportunities including al fresco dining and outdoor events.
A one-day trial banning traffic from a half-mile stretch of Oxford Street took place in September 2025, which Khan described as “the day the fight back began to rescue the street”.
The plans subsequently received strong support from Londoners and businesses. An initial consultation in June 2025 attracted 6,642 responses, while retailers including Selfridges and John Lewis backed the proposals.
Khan described the plans as his “bold vision to transform Oxford Street into a world-leading urban space for shopping, leisure and outdoor events”.
The first phase will see traffic banned between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street by the end of October. A permanent design for the new layout, expected to include al fresco dining areas, is due to be published by November 2027.
Westminster Council, which was won by the Conservatives at May’s local elections, has previously criticised what it described as a “sham” consultation over the pedestrianisation plans. Khan’s office has rejected accusations that the project is being rushed.