Photo: Luke Tanis on Unsplash
Heatwave saw footfall plummet in central London
04 October 2022
by Sarah Wray
According to new figures from the High Streets Data Service, the number of visitors in central London fell to 74 percent of the previous month’s total during July’s record heatwave.
Mayor Sadiq Khan said this was comparable to the announcement of ‘Plan B’ Covid restrictions in December 2021 when office workers were encouraged to work from home.
Khan highlighted the findings as he warned that failure to tackle climate change will not only lead to more extreme weather events but will also significantly impact the capital’s economy.
July’s heatwave saw temperatures surpass 40 degrees Celsius for the first time in London and the UK. Fires across the capital destroyed homes and prompted London Fire Brigade to declare a major incident.
Crippled infrastructure
On 18 July, when temperatures in London exceeded 35 degrees, there were 385,640 daytime workers in central London, when 518,000 workers would usually be expected. This equates to 74 percent of footfall compared to June 2022.
On the same day, there were 275,000 daytime visitors to central London, when a normal day would expect to see more than 361,000 people. This equates to 76 percent of June 2022 footfall.
The figures come from London’s High Streets Data Service, a tool developed and used by City Hall and London boroughs during the pandemic to better understand economic activity. It incorporates open data and paid-for third-party data including aggregate footfall and spending data from O2 and Mastercard.
£75 billion climate investment
Khan, who is also Chair of the C40 Cities network, said: “For decades, we’ve known this train has been hurtling in our direction. But it’s only now that it’s finally caught up with us that the sense of crisis is at its most acute.
“On 19 July, temperatures in our city soared to 40 degrees. For the first time ever, London overheated.
“Vicious wildfires overwhelmed emergency services. Destroyed homes. And infrastructure was crippled by extreme heat.
“We also saw a dramatic drop in footfall across central London to the detriment of our businesses.”
Khan said that meeting London’s 2030 net zero target will require over £75 billion (US$85 billion) worth of investment.
“We simply can’t deliver that without the private sector,” Khan commented.
“I know you’re all dealing with inflationary pressures right now, but there are huge opportunities – and rewards – to be seized by accelerating our efforts to achieve net zero by 2030. “
Khan added that his Green New Deal had created investments in green jobs, skills and infrastructure in London.
He said that under his leadership, the capital had delivered a five-fold increase in protected cycling lanes, put more electric and hydrogen powered buses on roads, cleaned up the taxi fleet and provided hundreds of new electric vehicle charging points.
