The UK Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has rejected Westminster Council's request to delay Sadiq Khan's pedestrianisation plan for Oxford Street. The council had argued that banning traffic from the street would lead to increased noise and pollution in surrounding roads, but their concerns were ignored by the ministry on Friday. Deputy council leader Tim Barnes expressed disappointment and warned of a potential "unmanaged mess" if the project proceeds without proper planning. The pedestrianisation is set to begin with traffic banned between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street by the end of October.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
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Leaning score +0.35 for article 4854 (high confidence, 2 verified quotes) · logged 2026-09-05
TfL sought permission to forego the full evaluation, but the local authority argued that plans to ban traffic from the capital’s flagship shopping street would lead to an increase in noise and pollution in surrounding roads.
asserted
plans → seek → roads
But minister’s rejected Westminster’s request on Friday.
asserted
’s → reject → Friday
Deputy council leader Tim Barnes said: "We’re extremely disappointed that MHCLG [the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government] has ignored legitimate concerns about the impact this scheme will have on central London.
"
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scheme → say → London
Rushing pedestrianisation to meet the Mayor’s arbitrary deadline will be a disaster for local people, businesses and visitors.
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Rushing → rush → people
“The Mayor’s own submission to MHCLG showed air pollution and noise rising.
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pollution → show → MHCLG
We need to know how much, and how far, those problems will spread.
"
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problems → need → ?
Important questions - on managing traffic, noise and impact on air quality all sit unanswered.
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questions → manage → quality
"We’ve consistently said that if pedestrianisation must happen we’ll help to make it work.
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it → say → ?
London deserves a world class shopping district but I’m worried we’re heading for an unmanaged mess.”
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we → deserve → mess
He added that the council was reviewing the details of the decision and considering its next steps as work begins on the scheme.
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work → add → scheme
Traffic is set to be banned between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street by the end of October and a permanent design for the new layout of the road, likely to include al fresco dining areas, is set to be published by November 2027.
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design → set → November
The Mayor believes pedestrianisation will boost Oxford Street’s attractiveness to shoppers, visitors and tourists and his office has previously rejected the Tory accusations that the project is being rushed.
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project → believe → accusations
TfL has said it submitted an environmental impact assessment screening opinion to the Government in “accordance with the legal requirements”.
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it → say → requirements
