Updated Sunday 18 September 2022

Marble Arch London BID wishes to extend our condolences to the Royal Family following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Guidance has been issued as the country enters a period of National Mourning, lasting until the end of the day of the State Funeral, which is to take place on Monday 19 September at Westminster Abbey. You can view this guidance here.

Arrangements for the funeral will require extensive road closures, cordons and exclusions zones. There will be rehearsals for the procession of the coffin carrying the Queen from Buckingham Palace and the state funeral procession. These will be ceremonial routes.

The day of the state funeral will be a Day of National Mourning. It has been formally designated as a bank holiday.

Traffic Restrictions and Access on a day-to-day basis

Restrictions are fluid and likely to change daily.

On Tuesday 13 September the coffin of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will depart Edinburgh for Buckingham Palace at 5pm. Once Her Majesty’s coffin has arrived at RAF Northolt it will begin its journey to Buckingham Palace, using the following route:

• A40
• Westbourne Terrace
• Lancaster Gate
• Bayswater Road
• Marble Arch
• Park Lane
• Hyde Park Corner
• Constitution Hill
• Centre Gate Centre Arch of Buckingham Palace

The coffin is expected to arrive at Buckingham Palace at 8pm.

On Wednesday 14 September Her Majesty will move from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall at approximately 2pm. The police expect all vehicular traffic to be prohibited in environs of Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and Parliament Square from approximately 11am until mid-afternoon. From 5pm, Her Majesty will lie-in-state in Westminster Hall and vehicular road closures in the environs of Parliament Square can be expected.

On Thursday 15 September Her Majesty will lie-in-state in Westminster Hall and the police expect vehicular road closures in the environs of Parliament Square for the entire day. Depending on the size of queue, further spontaneous vehicular closures may occur in Victoria Embankment and Westminster Bridge Road.

On Friday 16 September Her Majesty will lie-in-state in Westminster Hall and the police expect vehicular road closures in the environs of Parliament Square for the entire day. Depending on the size of queue, further spontaneous vehicular closures may occur in Victoria Embankment and Westminster Bridge Road.

On Saturday 17 September Her Majesty will lie-in-state in Westminster Hall and the police expect vehicular road closures in the environs of Parliament Square for the entire day. Depending on the size of queue, further spontaneous vehicular closures may occur in Victoria Embankment and Westminster Bridge Road.

On Sunday 18 September Her Majesty will lie-in-state in Westminster Hall and the police expect vehicular road closures in the environs of Parliament Square for the entire day. Depending on the size of queue, further spontaneous vehicular closures may occur in Victoria Embankment and Westminster Bridge Road. It is likely further vehicular road closures will begin in Victoria, Whitehall and the Mall in preparation for the State Funeral on Monday. Foreign Heads of State and dignitaries will arrive in London and the police expect spontaneous restrictions of vehicular and some pedestrian traffic in and around the Park Lane, Mayfair and Kensington areas.

The State Funeral will take place in Westminster Abbey on Monday 19 September at 11.00 a.m. The cortege will move in procession to Wellington Arch and then onto Windsor. There will be considerable total vehicular road closures throughout central London coupled with more limited vehicular closures in West London and towards Windsor. Police expect there to be total vehicular exclusion from around 5am for the entire marked area.

The route for the cortege from Westminster Abbey to Windsor will be along the south edge of Hyde Park, and then via Queens Gate, heading along Cromwell Road. The route will pass through Hammersmith and the north bank of the Thames. Continuing via Great South West Road, eventually reaching Windsor Road and then heading towards Windsor Castle. Police expect there to be total vehicular exclusion from mid-morning for the entire route. There will be pedestrian crossing points along the route. Emergency vehicle access will be appropriately facilitated.

The M4 eastbound will close at junction 3 at around 5am. The M4 eastbound entry slip at junction 1 will close at Clayponds Road at 5am. The M25 will remain open and traffic for London Heathrow Airport can use M4 junction 4 and M25 junction 14. There will be a short hold on traffic on the M25 at junction 13 at around 2pm. All closure of the motorways is being managed by National Highways.

 The roads will be open as soon as possible when it is safe to do so, once the roads have been cleansed.

Arrangements for Lying-in-State

The Queen will lie in state at the Palace of Westminster from 5pm on Wednesday 14 September until the morning of the funeral. Her coffin will lie on a raised box known as a catafalque in the centre of Westminster Hall, which will be open to the public for 24 hours per day. You can read the guidance for Her Majesty’s Lying-in-State here.

You can download a detailed map here.

Funeral Screening Site in Hyde Park

Hyde Park will be used as a screening site for the funeral. Park roads are therefore subject to closure. Park facilities such as toilets and concessions are expected to be very busy.

You can download the detailed map here.

Floral Tributes

Green Park will host a floral tribute garden in honour of Her Majesty The Queen. Flowers should be left without wrapping, and no candles and gifts will be permitted. Visit the Royal Parks website for advice on leaving a floral tribute.

Books of Condolence

A national online book of condolence is available on the Royal Family website here for those who wish to send a personal message.

Westminster Council has opened books of condolence across the city where everyone is welcome to leave a message. You can find the nearest location here.

Council Services

There will no doubt be increased demands upon Westminster Council services as large numbers of people travel to London to pay their respects.

Services such as parking, waste and recycling collections may be amended to accommodate processions and cordons. The Council will keep information updated on its website here. You can also find any changes to opening times of libraries, registrars and parks in the same link.

Further Links

The Royal Parks have a dedicated web page for all enquiries relating to the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.

All other information can be found on the government’s official website here.