Oxford Circus

Oxford Circus
Panoramic view of Oxford Circus
Location
Westminster, London
Coordinates:	51°30′55″N 0°08′31″W / 51.5153°N 0.142°W / 51.5153; -0.142Coordinates: 51°30′55″N 0°08′31″W / 51.5153°N 0.142°W / 51.5153; -0.142
Roads at junction:	Regent Street and Oxford Street
Construction
Type:	Intersection

Oxford Circus is the busiest intersection of Oxford Street (A40) and Regent Street in the West End of London. It is served by many bus routes and by Oxford Circus tube station, which is directly beneath the junction itself.

At the end of the 2000s, Oxford Circus had the highest pedestrian volumes recorded anywhere in London. At the busiest times, over 40,000 pedestrians per hour pass through the junction including those accessing the London Underground station.^[1]

History

The Circus was constructed at the beginning of the 19th century, and was designed by John Nash.

2009 diagonal crossing

Oxford Circus with diagonal crossing

In 2009, Westminster City Council started a £4m pedestrianisation scheme for the area, allowing shoppers to cross the intersection diagonally as well as the traditional 'straight ahead', turning it into a "pedestrian scramble", much like Tokyo's Shibuya crossing.^[2] Work started in Summer 2009, and the crossing opened on 2 November of the same year, by which time the cost had risen to £5 million.^[3] Although London Mayor Boris Johnson declared it "a triumph for British engineering, Japanese innovation and good old common sense", it was noted that a fairly similar crossing in Balham, South London had previously opened in 2005 at a cost of £98,000, approximately 50 times cheaper. One was also created in Wood Green.

Major shops

• Nike Town
• H&M
• Topshop/Topman
• United Colors of Benetton
• Miss Selfridge
• Schuh

Panorama view of the Oxford Circus diagonal crossing, 2014

Local museums

• Handel House Museum

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Oxford Circus.