Proposals for £4 million pedestrian-friendly redesign set out for Oxford Circus, London

Proposals for a £4 million redesign to allow pedestrians to walk across Oxford Circus in London have been launched for consultation.

The plan, based on Tokyo's Shibuya crossing, will strip out existing barriers and street clutter to allow pedestrians to cross Oxford Circus diagonally.

Following the  consultation period, work is due to start next summer and will take around nine-months.

Richard Dickinson, Chief Executive of New West End Company, said: 'The proposed Oxford Circus Diagonals are just one of many outstanding enhancements resulting from £1bn of investment into London's West End over the next four years.

'Around 250,000 people enter or leave Oxford Circus station every day so it's essential that their first ground-level view and experience of the West End is pleasing.

'We're delighted that the Oxford Circus Diagonals will allow more space for pedestrians and give the Oxford Street and Regent Street juncture back to the shoppers. Nine out of ten visitors to London come to the West End so we have a duty to ensure that it continues to be the world's top shopping destination in 2012.'

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