The Tottenham Court Road Frontage I Mentioned Earlier

Wet, with ferns growing out of the rainwater gutters, with the fascia distorted but hopefully not destroyed, a beautiful building nonetheless. Every building of a similar age carries in its structure and design a part of the retail history of London. Tottenham Court Road, the main route north from Oxford Street and the Crossrail hub to the Euston Road, has plenty of potential, plenty of the specialist shops that attract footfall: furniture and furnishings, electronic, Charlotte Street restaurants to the back of it, as well as world class hospitals and institutes: University College Hospital is at its northern end. Treasuring heritage buildings like this one can only help the street succeed in what are transitional times for retailing. This particular building has an emblem carved into the frieze at the top. I don’t recognize it but perhaps someone does.

More on Oxford Street's Retail Heritage

Two pleasing Oxford Street buildings that I missed earlier from the northern section that runs from the Circus to Tottenham Court Road, both in need of tlc. And another view of the glorious building at No. 42 (52, my mistake), at the entrance of Hanway Place from Oxford Street, in need of celebrating - who knows the architects?

The Ongoing Story of Hanway Place

I saw one. I saw an anonymous white HGV (heavy goods vehicle) drive into Hanway Street and attempt to turn up Hanway Place. It had already obliterated half the paving stones on the right-hand side on the way in. The driver had a consignment to deliver to a goods entrance in Hanway Street. I didn’t take a photograph. It wasn’t the chap at the wheel’s fault. HGV drivers are trained to within an inch of their lives. They have what amounts to a degree in driving. Nor was it the fault of the medieval street layout at this precious corner of the metropolis (please see previous posts). The fault of the shop? The fault of the shop’s customers? Who can we blame for this dismal state of affairs, where the precious infrastructure is being damaged and where the constant threat is that the precious infrastructure will be ‘developed’ to accommodate oversized HGVs.

Well, I went round the front of the goods entrance (it belongs to the lovely new Oxford Street Primark by the way). Yummy shop, we all shop there, don’t we? I took a picture of the shop entrance.

It seems plenty big enough for goods deliveries providing they were made at a sensible time. Oxford Street is plenty big enough to accommodate large HGVs – and in addition, its road surface is appropriate to bear the weight of HGVs. Would it not be wonderful if shops such as Primark took a lead in such matters? Showed what can be done to ensure a win-win-win for retailers, customers and London.

Can I just mention that in my extensive travels in the Low Countries and Northern France, there is never, ever a delivery lorry on city roads during daylight hours. Less noise, less pollution, less panicky time-driven driving - and with daylight hours where it is a pleasure to be in a city - whether you live there, work or study there, or are visiting.