Forum Topic

Architectural Prize for the Dukes Meadows Footbridge

A very well deserved prize for this beautiful bridge. Well done Hounslow Council for selecting the renowned Architects; Moxon, to design it. Also a big thank you to Councillor John Todd for all his hard work on ensuring this project gets built.

Jane Hanna ● 758d35 Comments

I remember reading that somewhere.

Janice Evans ● 750d

I don't think so Janice. Upstream it has vered sharply away from the river taking you straight back on to the road.If you want far better view then the one can be had from the rail bridge, including the Shard in the far distance.

Adrian Irving ● 751d

Believe it was re-routed for a better view of the Thames

Janice Evans ● 751d

Quoting another poster “Folk may not remember Hounslow originally told us the walkway was to seamlessly connect the Thames Path.For some yet unexplained reason the structure was re-routed. Now, on the upstream side, you are forced to exit straight on to the road and then walk a couple of hundred yards around a blind bend to rejoin the Thames Path. Far from ideal.We were also told it was costed at  2.5 million. Hounslow are being cagey about the reality. Understandably so when the truth is somewhere between six and eight million.”Amongst others who are equally not impressed

Maggie Dodge ● 751d

Philippa I am basing my comments on criticism of others.  Is there anybody who doesn’t care about the elderly and the disabled?

Maggie Dodge ● 751d

Maggie  I thought you were an advocate for the elderly and disabled.  This is an ACCESSIBLE bridge - something we could do with many more of.  Have you checked it out yet?https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/news/article/2795/new_footbridge_in_chiswick_opens_along_the_river_thames

Philippa Bond ● 752d

How disappointing, I was expecting a much greater backlash . Early days

Maggie Dodge ● 754d

Maggie, as inclusive as ever.

Dick Greenleigh ● 754d

Yes the rainbow crossings were probably the craziest of all the money wasting schemes, second only to planters. As if they achieved anything. You would have to be dead from the neck up not to know about the LGBTQRSPY community who are only second in arrogance to the cycling zealots.

Maggie Dodge ● 754d

Pretty much yes!They are competing factors. All a question of priorityGiven the financial situation the country is in I would have preferred something cheaper at the expense of appearance. This is though the council who gave us the rainbow crossings - a project that should have been knocked on the head the moment the quote came in above £10000. I would much rather the money spent on that went to LGBTQIA+ youth programs instead of what in my view was a vanity project.I am not though comparing the 2 projects

david ward ● 755d

Kind of ironic isn't it? Maggie wishes all those years ago there were experts involved in building the bridges. But when her grandchildren look back they'll see she campaigned against experts promoting sustainable travel. 

John Hall ● 755d

Hmm  I would have thought that was built in your great grand-parents' time.

Philippa Bond ● 755d

“Maybe the family influenced the bridge plans”. It would be nice if we employed experts in the field on any structures in the borough,  and they weren’t influenced by anuthong other than the very best design at the best cost. Is that too much to ask ?

Maggie Dodge ● 755d

Yes, Bernard is the go to person. He told us on here that the raised part of the big field  towards the river end  was formed  using rubble from bombsites after WW2. A great deal of destruction below your feet.Since knowing this I now cross that area with a twinge of sadness thinking of all the suffering war brings.

Adrian Irving ● 755d

I read that the first Barnes Bridge was followed by today's second one in the 1890sAs the Riverside Lands area was owned by successive Dukes of Devonshire ...maybe that family influenced the Bridge plans.Bernard is our expert!

Jim Lawes ● 756d

All in all could have done better . As per

Maggie Dodge ● 756d

How mad though - not to include a towpath arch when the bridge was built! I know people will make excuses for this but how many other bridges require a 400m detour to continue a riverside walk?

Michael Brown ● 756d

The "problem" being people had to walk for a few more minutes (7) to rejoin the Thames Path. How ironic as we were told one of the reasons for building the walkway was to encourage active travel.Personally I can think of a lot bigger problems to spend many millions on.Hey ho, what is done is done. Now let's press Hounslow restore the woodland destroyed in the construction. The job isn't finished until they do.BTW I hear whispers that the replacement of the boat house they demolished is in trouble and may be a very long time coming.

Adrian Irving ● 756d

The main purpose of the walkway was to solve a problem rather than boast a great architecturally glamorous piece, and it has solved the problem. Barnes Bridge is hardly attractive, anyway - not to my eye..

Michael Brown ● 757d

In all things one man’s ugly is another man’s beautiful.

Maggie Dodge ● 757d

I don't think the Victorian philanthropists planned on spending their money going to Mars.  They were proud to spend it in their own localities.

Philippa Bond ● 757d

We no longer have the skills to create victorian structures.It's interesting that people without degrees (and often illiterate) were able to create such beautiful and long lasting architecture yet people with degrees now create such ugliness.

Bryan Turner ● 757d

And well done to all involved.

Janice Evans ● 757d

It's impossible to please everyone, we love the older Victorian structuresbut the are difficult and expensive to maintain.

Janice Evans ● 757d

I agree that much modern architecture in this country doesn't fit in with the environment, but I think the walkway under Barnes Bridge looks okay, and is functional; and thanks to all LBH councillors and officers involved for making it happen..

Michael Brown ● 757d

Folk may not remember Hounslow originally told us the walkway was to seamlessly connect the Thames Path.For some yet unexplained reason the structure was re-routed. Now, on the upstream side, you are forced to exit straight on to the road and then walk a couple of hundred yards around a blind bend to rejoin the Thames Path. Far from ideal.We were also told it was costed at  2.5 million. Hounslow are being cagey about the reality. Understandably so when the truth is somewhere between six and eight million.

Adrian Irving ● 757d

Nah, how many people visit the city of Bath from anywhere in the world thinking its architecture is ugly. People know objective beauty instinctively. To deny that is just post modern revisionism.

Bryan Turner ● 757d

I could not agree more - the bridge is a joy to use!Brilliantly executed and the result of hard work by so many people, including John Todd to bring the vision to life!Architecture is, of course, subjective. Engineers in the Victorian era often incorporated ornament into their designs, which completely works in that context.In the bridge, the architects (while solving a difficult practical problem) have done the difficult job of making something extremely complex look extremely simple and well detailed - which is, to my eye, pleasing!

James Holmes-Siedle ● 757d

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder"Look again at the picture supplier by the architects. The one with the steel structure dominating the woodland beyond.Then,if you will, imagine the scene without the walkway and appreciate nothing but the riverbank framed by a wooded visa.I know which I prefer.I quite understand  people appreciating the actual structure but for me it jars and is out of harmony with it's surrounds.To illustrate my point,I admire the Lloyds Building in the City but I would hate it if it were plonked along our High Road.Anyway what's done is done, now we must press the council to restore the woodland downstream that was bulldozed and burnt to give access to the heavy machinery used in construction.The topsoil was stripped and the area has been left as an sterile eyesore. Promises have been made but nothing has been done.

Adrian Irving ● 757d

Bridgie McBridge face

Mark Frost ● 757d

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder!  Or not as the case may be.  This new bridge is on our walks to-do list but I definitely think there is great beauty to be found in many aspects of design including simplicity and practicality of solution.  Congratulations to all not only for the prize but also for achieving the fulfilment of a project as so many never leave the 'drawing board'.

Philippa Bond ● 757d

That’s a meaningless statement. Beauty is objective and not subjective and everyone who is honest with themselves knows this.

Bryan Turner ● 758d

“Renown architects”, sounds expensive !

Maggie Dodge ● 758d

Buildings and structures we love today were not universally approved by the people at the time they were built. No change here then.I like the design of the bridge. Has it a name if not let's have some suggestions. !!!

Paul Jennings ● 758d

Clean maybe, functional yes, but I don't know how it can be described as beautiful.Seems like the same mindset that looks at this and thinks how wonderful London looks. It's a mess:https://www.julianelliottphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/london-skyline-panorama-cityscape-city-view-2048x512.jpgModern architecture is sterile, functional and utilitarian and we seem to have thrown out any objective ideas of aesthetic beauty.

Bryan Turner ● 758d