{"id":457820,"date":"2026-03-04T22:29:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T22:29:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/457820\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T22:29:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T22:29:10","slug":"anti-terrorism-barriers-set-to-prevent-cyclists-from-using-pedestrianised-oxford-street-under-latest-tfl-plans-cycling-news-bike-reviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/457820\/","title":{"rendered":"Anti-terrorism barriers set to prevent cyclists from using pedestrianised Oxford Street, under latest TfL plans – Cycling News | Bike Reviews"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Plans have been unveiled for anti-terror barriers to be used to prevent cyclists from travelling along Oxford Street as part of its planned pedestrianisation.<\/p>\n

The Standard<\/a> first reported the barrier decision, with London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan previously saying that he didn\u2019t want \u201cbuses, cars, minicabs, taxis or racing cyclists\u201d to use the road, adding that the street\u2019s redevelopment is \u201cfor people to walk around there\u201d and that \u201cthere\u2019d be alternatives if you want to go round\u201d.<\/p>\n

But the latest plans for \u201chostile vehicle mitigation\u201d barriers are to both prevent vehicles driving illegally (and dangerously) through the planned \u201cpedestrian plaza\u201d and to \u201cinhibit\u201d anyone from cycling through the barriers.<\/p>\n

\"CyclistCyclist on Oxford Street (Image: jpellgen on Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Plans for Oxford Street\u2019s pedestrianisation have been cautiously welcomed by campaigners in the capital, but largely on the condition of safe, alternative cycle routes being designed around the road. In 2024, the Mayor of London\u2019s office told road.cc that they \u201cwill be working to provide alternative routes for cyclists, enhanced cycling provision, and potential cyclist access at night.\u201d<\/p>\n

> Cyclists to be banned from Oxford Street as part of Sadiq Khan\u2019s pedestrianisation plans, but could be allowed to cycle at night<\/a><\/p>\n

London\u2019s Walking and Cycling Commissioner Will Norman also defended the planned cyclist ban<\/a>, adding that the cycling experience \u201cwould be extremely unpleasant\u201d on Oxford Street. However, the London Cycling Campaign described Transport for London\u2019s proposed alternative cycle route as \u201cweak and wiggly\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Standard\u2019s latest reporting suggests there is still the possibility of cycle access at certain times, with the street set to re-open between midnight and 7am for delivery drivers. Further \u2018pop-up\u2019 bollards could also be used to adjust road access.<\/p>\n

\"OxfordProposed Oxford Street pedestrianisation (Image Credit: Google Maps)<\/p>\n

The \u00a3150 million pedestrianisation proposal will stretch from Orchard Street to Great Portland Street, cutting across Regent\u2019s Street. Current plans are for the pedestrianisation to be completed by the end of the summer. Pedestrianisation has also been a long-held objective of the Mayor, with previous efforts blocked by both Westminster City Council and the UK Government. Both bodies are now Labour-led.<\/p>\n

Whilst it is hoped that the pedestrianisation incentivises drivers to reduce their car dependency, the move has also had unintended consequences for other active travel developments and has been used as an excuse to protest against further cycle investment. In October, Conservative councillors for Marylebone wrote to Westminster Council calling for a planned new cycleway to be postponed until after the Oxford Street pedestrianisation is complete, saying that the extension would \u201cignore the needs of pensioners, disabled people and those who rely on local parking.\u201d<\/p>\n

> \u201cDeeply depressing and frustrating\u201d: London Tory councillors say extending \u00a31.5 million cycle route to bypass pedestrianised Oxford Street would be \u201cirresponsible\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

The proposed ban on cyclists has also been criticised by former Walking and Cycling Commissioner Andrew Gilligan, who labelled Khan\u2019s 2017 proposal<\/a> \u201can unqualified disaster\u201d due to \u201cthe lack of suitable parallel routes for safe infrastructure for bike riders means an Oxford Street cycling ban [that] would be ignored by many.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Plans have been unveiled for anti-terror barriers to be used to prevent cyclists from travelling along Oxford Street…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":457821,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-457820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/457820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=457820"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/457820\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/457821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=457820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=457820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=457820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}