The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is inviting Londoners and visitors to the capital to ‘Experience Oxford Street like you have never seen it before’ as the nation’s most famous high-street will be completely transformed and go traffic-free for a landmark event next week.

The ‘This is Oxford Street’ event, on Sunday 21 September, is free and open to all to attend and will shine a light on how the street could look in the future as the Mayor moves forward with his pledge to pedestrianise the street and unlock its true potential.

Oxford Street will be closed from traffic between from 12pm until 8pm for the first event of its kind – with themed zones, featuring fashion, sport, music, food, heritage and much more – spanning half a mile from Orchard Street to Oxford Circus. 

The event comes as the Mayor moves ahead with transformative proposals to pedestrianise Oxford Street and supercharge regeneration in the area following the overwhelmingly positive response from Londoners to plans for the transformation of Oxford Street. 

Today, the Mayor has revealed an exciting programme of activities and entertainment in-store for Londoners at ‘This is Oxford Street’ – with live music, including DJs, acoustic sets and performances from acts on three stages, activations by retailers and shops, art installations, an urban forest, an exhibition of the history of Oxford Street, food and drink from around the world, coffee and cocktail bars, a chill out zone, and activities for children such as a Literary Festival, poetry and storytelling, face painting, games and competitions.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: 

“’This is Oxford Street’ is going to be a landmark, free event open for everyone and will showcase the nation’s high street as you have never seen it before, offering a glimpse of what it could look like in the future. From food and drink from different cultures to live main stage music, to a Literary Festival for children and action-packed activations from major brands, shops and event partners, it is going to be a fantastic day.

“As Mayor, I have pledged to pedestrianise Oxford Street and I am determined to unlock its true potential to deliver a world-class, accessible, clean street for everyone as we build a better, greener and safer London for all.”

The Greater London Authority’s report on the public consultation, published in June 2025, showed Londoners and businesses back the Mayor’s ideas for pedestrianisation of Oxford Street. Almost seven in 10 expressed support for Sadiq’s proposed interventions to regenerate Oxford Street, while two-thirds were supportive of the pedestrianisation idea specifically.

It includes a public consultation on proposals to pedestrianise the main shopping thoroughfare on Oxford Street which would improve visitor experience and better enable new leisure offers, such as al fresco dining and outdoor events. The Mayor has been clear that Oxford Street is an area of critical national economic importance, with an estimated annual contribution of £25bn to London’s economy – but it has suffered over many years for a variety of reasons, from the pandemic to the growth of online shopping and retail parks.

Now, the Mayor is progressing with steps to establish a Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC) dedicated to regenerating the area and ultimately making Oxford Street a world-leading urban space for shopping, leisure and outdoor events. Following support from the London Assembly in July 2025, the Mayor is working with Government to make the necessary legislation for the MDC to be established by 1 January 2026.

Emma Strain, Director of Customer at Transport for London, said: 

“Oxford Street is an iconic location and this event will be like nothing the West End has ever seen. Served by a number of Tube lines, the Elizabeth line and local bus services, customers will be able to visit and experience a traffic-free Oxford Street and the range of live music, food markets, have a go at Basketball or Baseball, and check out pop-up events with well-known brands. People travelling to the event are advised to check before they travel using the free TfL Go app to plan their journey.” 

(Pic: Mayor of London)