Footfall rose 16% and spending 28% in Oxford Street's first traffic-free week, City Hall says. Buses ran well, TfL says, including the four from Barnet.
Footfall on the traffic-free stretch of Oxford Street rose 16 per cent in its first week, and spending in its shops rose 28 per cent, according to figures released by the Mayor of London on Monday 9 November. Transport for London says the buses around it, which include the 13, 113, 139 and 189 from Barnet, kept running well.
The section between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street has been shut to private vehicles, buses, taxis, private hire cars, cycles, scooters and pedicabs since Monday 26 October. When it closed we set out which Barnet buses changed and how long the trip takes from each station in the borough.
What the first week showed
City Hall’s High Streets Data Service compared the first week, which fell in October half-term, with half-term week in 2025. On the pedestrianised section, City Hall says:
- footfall was up 16 per cent
- international visitors were up 42 per cent
- domestic visitors were up 14 per cent
- workers were up 1 per cent
- people stayed 5 per cent longer on average
Across the wider Oxford Street area, it counted an average of 292,835 people a day between 26 and 31 October, up 9 per cent on the same days last year. Visits between 6pm and 6am were up 19 per cent.
City Hall says the figures “far surpass” the most optimistic expectations of the Mayor and the Oxford Street Development Corporation, which had both expected a rise.
The buses from Barnet
The release does not break bus performance down by route. TfL says its contracted bus operators reported that services “continued to run well”, with disruption linked to short-term local incidents. It will use full route performance data, due in the coming weeks, to check scheduled running times and contracted performance standards.
That check matters for Barnet passengers, because the 139 to Golders Green was moved off Oxford Street to Wigmore Street and Henrietta Place, and the 13, 113 and 189 now use the Orchard Street stops at the western end of the closure.
On Wigmore Street, TfL found traffic speeds similar to before, with eastbound journeys slightly faster and westbound slightly slower. Early data also showed slightly faster journeys on Regent Street. Overall, it found no significant change in traffic speeds on the surrounding roads.
TfL says it considers the half-term figures representative, and will keep watching the road network and adjust traffic signals where needed as more people come for Christmas.
Busier Tube stations
TfL recorded more entries and exits at Oxford Circus and Bond Street. Nearly 200,000 a day were recorded from Wednesday 28 to Friday 30 October, and Bond Street was up by more than 10 per cent from 28 October.
From most of the borough, Oxford Circus is one change away: the Northern line to Euston, then the Victoria line. Bond Street is the stop for Thameslink passengers from Hendon and Mill Hill Broadway, via West Hampstead and the Jubilee line.
TfL’s pavement counters showed the bigger jump. West of Oxford Circus, the average hourly count between 7am and 7pm on weekdays rose from 6,523 before the closure to 9,751 in the first week, up 49.5 per cent. At the Stratford Place and Davies Street junction by Bond Street station it rose from 5,516 to 8,051. TfL says footfall there was up to 46 per cent above the weekday average between 7 September and 16 October.
What shops took
The spending figures come from the payments company Adyen and cover the Oxford Street stores in its year-on-year comparison. Spending rose from about £2.9 million to £3.7 million, and in-store transactions rose 19 per cent. The average spent per transaction went up from £100 to £107. On Regent Street, transactions rose by 1 per cent. Against the week before the closure, total spending rose 12 per cent, from £4.1 million to £4.6 million. Retail Week reported the Adyen figures.
Two businesses on the street gave their own numbers. Dan Hills, chief executive of Market Halls, said footfall at its Oxford Street food hall was up 29 per cent year on year and sales up 25 per cent. “The increase in visitors coming through our doors, including a rise in the proportion of foot traffic from nearby Holles Street, shows that creating a more people-centric environment encourages people to explore more of what it has to offer and support local businesses,” he said.
Paul Crossey, managing director of the Jane Austen Experience, said: “The pedestrianisation has meant more people are drawn to the attractions, shops and other businesses in and around Oxford Street. This increase has been measurable for us, as we saw 27 per cent more visitors to the Jane Austen Experience in the first week of the traffic-free scheme.”
What the Mayor and TfL said
Sadiq Khan said: “These are staggering early results that show the transformational impact that the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street will have. Our early work has been very warmly received by Londoners and visitors, with a surge in footfall and spend.”
“More people are coming to Oxford Street, more are visiting in the evening and shops are seeing more sales. These initial results are better than we had anticipated and a real boost for the nation’s high street and the businesses that make it such a special place to visit.”
Claire Mann, TfL’s chief operating officer, said: “It may only be a few weeks since Oxford Street became traffic-free but already the feedback from people along the street has been phenomenal. A huge amount of work has gone into delivering this change, and as we continue to deliver further improvements to this new pedestrian space in the coming months, we will be closely monitoring these changes to make sure they are working for everyone and supporting the continued economic growth London needs.”
Nabeel Khan, chief executive of the Oxford Street Development Corporation, said: “We are greatly encouraged by the early footfall and dwell time figures, which is showing the additional space to roam is proving attractive to visitors to the street.”
Dee Corsi, chief executive of the New West End Company, was more measured. “We are about to enter the most important trading period of the year for the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, and Christmas will be a crucial early test for pedestrianisation in practice,” she said.
What happens next
City Hall says this is the first stage of a phased programme, and building work will be kept to a minimum in the coming weeks to limit disruption over Christmas. The figures cover a single week that was also half-term, so they are an early reading rather than a guide to a normal December.
What it means for you
- Shopping from Barnet before Christmas: expect a busier street than last year, especially in the evening. The Tube is still the quickest way in; our journey times from 12 Barnet stations are in our earlier piece.
- Going by bus: the 139 stops on Wigmore Street and Henrietta Place, and the 13, 113 and 189 at Orchard Street. Check the TfL journey planner before you leave.
- Shopping closer to home: our Christmas shopping guide to Barnet covers 18 stops in the borough, and our Barnet Christmas travel page has the season’s rail and road changes.
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