Oxford Street’s move to pedestrianised sections is associated with higher retail spending and visitor activity, with multiple outlets citing City Hall or card-spend data showing gains compared with the same period last year.
BBC News reports that spending is up since the traffic ban, with figures compared against the equivalent week prior to pedestrianisation. The Independent highlights “staggering” results, including retail spending up by 28% in one account that attributes the figure to Mayor Sadiq Khan. Retail Gazette frames the change as a broader West End effect, reporting increases in transactions across London’s West End and describing shoppers flocking to the newly traffic-free area.
Evening Standard coverage emphasises footfall and transport impacts, using City Hall figures that in the first week show increased footfall alongside rises in visitor spending and Tube station usage. While the outlets largely agree on the direction of change—spending and footfall rising—details such as which datasets are used (card transactions versus City Hall measures), and the specific percentage figures highlighted, vary by report.
