Car-Free Days Flood London With Pedestrians -- And Commerce

Temporarily pedestrianized streets in London brought nearly a million people out for a day of walking and shopping recently, resulting in more than $200 million worth of sales.

1 minute read

December 11, 2007, 10:00 AM PST

By Nate Berg

"Up to a million people descended on central London's premier shopping streets when traffic was banned from Oxford Street, Bond Street and Regent Street on Saturday."

"It was the third pre-Christmas car-free event, but the first occasion that all three major shopping thoroughfares have been pedestrianised at the same time."

"The one million shoppers who turned out on Saturday were entertained by choirs, acrobats, giant illuminations and a performance of the Snowman. A fireworks display finished off the event. Mr Tyrrell said: 'There were no problems with the roads closures, everything went really smoothly.'"

"'The day was about giving something back to the shoppers and we would love to see many more car- free days, and not just at Christmas.'"

"Mayor Ken Livingstone, who opened the event, said: 'It has become a major event in London's calendar in the run-up to Christmas [and] shows us all what the West End will be like in 2013 with traffic removed and the streets turned over to the pedestrian.'"

Thanks to Streetsblog

FULL STORY: £100million shopping bonanza as Oxford St bans cars for one day

Monday, December 3, 2007 in The Evening Standard

Community / Economic Development Transportation United Kingdom

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Start Learning

Advertise with us

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.