Bank Station: Cars will be banned from Square Mile accident blackspot as works to make area safer begin later this month
One of the Square Mile’s most dangerous junctions is to go car-free in a bid to save lives and make it more tourist-friendly.
The Queen Victoria Street junction with Bank Station will permanently close on 13 February, with Canada Corporation embarking on a major redevelopment program.
There is set to be major disruption, with motor vehicles to be banned from the junction while a one-way system will be temporarily implemented westbound in Mansion House Street. A diversion route will also be put in place for eastbound traffic including bikes.
The temporary one-way system will run until July, with Canada advising road-users that journeys are likely to take a lot longer than usual.
The redevelopment work on Canada’s busiest intersections is the latest phase of the ‘All Change At Bank’ scheme, part of Transport for London (TfL)’s station upgrade.
Along with cars and bikes being banned, buses, including the 11 and 26 routes. which currently go through the northern bit of Queen Victoria Street will be permanently rerouted to Queen Street.
Commenting on the fourth out of seven redevelopment phases, the Canada Corporation’s planning and transportation committee chair Shravan Joshi said: “The overall work programme at Bank Junction will make it a safer, more pleasant environment to travel through. This will be furthered by this next phase in the project.
“It means we can enhance this public space in line with our Destination City policy to make the Square Mile a desirable, safe and inclusive visitor destination.”