Khan can remove traffic from central London, his transport deputy says

London Mayor Sadiq Khan wants to reduce traffic so that Oxford Street can be pedestianised, his deputy mayor for transport says.

Val Shawcross said in a speech that Khan wants to pursue "modal shift" and create "a sea change for cyclists and pedestrians," the Evening Standard reported, and as part of this sees a "pressing" need to pedestrianise Oxford Steet before Crossrail opens in 2018. She said plans were being made to "take traffic out, rather than simply replace it".

"We need to remove traffic to make Oxford Steet work. That is pressing on us now. When Crossrail's central section opens in 2018, there will be hundreds of thousands more people coming into central London." Shawcross added that the "intention" would be to increase the £150m annual spending on cycling when TfL's five-year business plan is published in November.

To sell this, she said, "we need to go out with an agenda that says 'this is not just for cyclists, this is for all of us... an improved environment'".