LONDON, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Oxford Street, a busy shopping street here, could become traffic-free under plans the mayor of the capital city revealed Monday.
About half a mile (0.8 km) of the street from Oxford Circus to Orchard Street could become a "traffic-free pedestrian boulevard" by December 2018, said London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
He said he hoped it would coincide with the arrival of the underground Elizabeth Line in central London in December next year.
As one of the busiest shopping streets in Europe, Oxford Street is world famous, with millions of visitors every year. British public broadcaster the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported that more than 4 million people visit the street each week.
According to the plans, all west-east traffic will be banned and roads will be raised to sidewalk levels to improve accessibility.
Meanwhile, cyclists would not be able to ride in the pedestrianized area. But Transport for London said it would try to create "new high-quality cycle routes" to the north and south of Oxford Street.
The number of bus routes on Oxford Street was cut by 40 percent earlier this year ahead of the move towards a pedestrian-only zone.
A spokesman for the mayor's office said the project would contribute to the mayor's aim of improving air quality and make Oxford Street "a far safer and more pleasant place to visit."
