Johnson says £5m makeover of London landmark, designed by Atkins, is a 'triumph of British engineering'

Europe's busiest diagonal crossing was unveiled today by London mayor Boris Johnson following a £5m makeover of Oxford Circus.

For the first time ever shoppers will be able to cross the busy intersection diagonally in an 'X' as well as straight ahead – which will mean the junction will be able to handle double the number of pedestrians and ease overcrowding.

Taking a lead from Tokyo's famous Shibuya crossing, renowned for allowing large numbers to cross with ease, the remodelled Oxford Circus - designed by Atkins - has had its barriers and street clutter ripped out and remodelled, giving the 200 million shoppers and workers that visit annually around 70% more freedom to move around.

The new crossing, which has been jointly funded by The Crown Estate, which owns Regent Street in its entirety and Transport for London, builds on The Crown Estate’s £750m Regent Street regeneration programme and also forms part of wider £40m plans led by Westminster City Council to renew the West End ahead of 2012.

Johnson said: "This project is a triumph for British engineering, Japanese innovation and good old fashioned common sense. The head scratching frustration caused by the previous design is over and we’ve brought one of the world’s greatest crossroads into the twenty first century. Being able to cross in an oblique rather than a perpendicular fashion will make Oxford Circus incredibly more efficient for the millions of pedestrians and road users that use the crossing every year.”

This project is a triumph for British engineering, Japanese innovation and good old fashioned common sense

Boris Johnson

The engineering project took just six months to complete and involved complete remodelling above and below ground, including removing old traffic islands and void spaces, whilst keeping traffic moving and catering for millions of pedestrians.

Concrete and metal barriers have been ripped out and paving now boasts top quality and durable York stone which has been coated with special chemical to help make removing chewing gum easier.

Traffic lights have been rephased so that the vehicles from all four directions are stopped simultaneously for 30 seconds allowing people to walk safely across the junction diagonally.

Contractor West One carried out the major work below and above to remodel the crossing.

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