Part of London's Oxford Street pedestrianized 'forever'

LONDON — A stretch of London's iconic Oxford Street was made traffic-free "forever" starting Monday, as pedestrians took over the country's most famous shopping street, absent of the capital's red double-decker buses and black cabs. "This is a momentous day for Oxford Street, but also for London," Mayor Sadiq Khan told reporters on the thoroughfare, one of the busiest shopping zones in Europe. "I want to be supporting our shops in Oxford Street and have a kilometer worth of this street — almost half of this street — traffic-free forever," Khan said, adding the pedestrianisation would increase the number of shoppers. The street brings in some 3.1 billion euro ($4.1 billion) spending annually, but has faced challenges, including shops shuttering during the COVID-19 pandemic and a loss of footfall due to a shift to online shopping. "Over the last couple of decades it's been in decline, I'd say managed decline," Khan told BBC Radio 4 about the street lined with luxury retailers, clothing chains, and department stores. "I'm not willing to stand by as shops leave this street, as jobs leav