Regent Street remained closed today after a burst water main flooded the road.
The road - one of the country's busiest shopping streets - was closed yesterday afternoon with the burst pipe flooding the road and 15 shops were also shut.
All the shops were open today but Thames Water said the road was closed while engineers replaced the broken section of pipe at the junction of Vigo Street and Glasshouse Street.
Clive Dickens, Thames Water engineer, said: "This was a major burst and has caused significant damage to the road.
"We are sorry for the disruption it caused.
"We are doing all we can to get the road open to traffic as soon as possible but it is likely that we will need to keep the road closed for the next 24 hours.
"In the meantime, we are working closely with Westminster Council to minimise disruption.
"The footpaths are clear and shops are open for business as usual. We apologise for the inconvenience."
After engineers have fixed the pipe, they will need to rebuild the road over the top of the mended water main.
