Hammersmith Bridge 2.9m cycle path delayed to April 25
Article from the Barnes Bugle below. Bridge cycle lane delayed to April 2025Back in May when we shared the news that the Government had provided funding of £2.9 million to upgrade the cycle lane in the middle of Hammersmith Bridge we stated, with no confidence at all, that the central span cycle lane, which was to close at the end of May, was planned to be re-opened in November 2024.We wondered at the time, if we were being unnecessarily snarky when we implied that the November date might not be met, saying ‘or should that be December or January or some unspecified date in 2025?’. But, it is no surprise at all to be revealing that the new proposed date for the opening of the cycle lane is April 2025.Saying ‘told you so’ is always annoying, but the real annoyance lies with pedestrians and cyclists using the narrow walkways along the side of the bridge, who are now going to have to cope with a further six months of sometimes amiable and sometimes not so amiable jostling for space.The news has come after a freedom of information request from local campaign group Hammersmith Bridge SOS, where a response revealed that before the cycle lane can be re-instated the stabilisation works on the bridge’s pedestals needed to be completed (this is expected in November) and Cadent’s work to divert the gas supply on the north side of the bridge needs to be finished.For now, work on the bridge’s piteously pitted and degraded road surface seems to be underway but all cyclists can do is stare at the wonderful wide open road space while they wheel their bikes along the crowded walkways and think wistfully of the freedom of the open road that was granted to them and then snatched away earlier this year. Friction between cyclists and pedestrians increases as the heat rises on the bridgeTempers always seem to get frayed in the heat and perhaps that’s the reason we’ve seen so much argy-bargy between pedestrians and cyclists on the bridge over the past few weeks. Cyclists and scooterists who fail to dismount are the cause of much disgruntlement both to pedestrians and other cyclists who abide by the rules. Frustration at others’ actions get too much for some people sometimes and when they request that cyclists dismount the result is often shouting and quite fruity language. However, more worryingly, we’ve also heard tales of people coming to blows. There are wardens on the bridge but they all they can do is politely request that cyclists and scooterists dismount. As we all know, the wardens’ requests are completely ignored by those who insist on cycling along the walkways and they also seem to be powerless to intervene when interactions between cyclists and pedestrians get fractious.At the Bugle we’re keen to find out more about how pedestrians and cyclists are coping with crossing the bridge and to get readers’ suggestions as to how things can be improved.We would be really grateful if you could contribute your experiences and thoughts by completing our survey. We will pass the responses on to Hammersmith Council and let you know what they say.Take the survey Viability of the Foster Cowi temporary bridge solution not yet knownHammersmith & Fulham Council’s preferred route to the full repair of the bridge is the audacious Foster Cowi bridge-within-a-bridge solution*. It’s all gone very quiet on this recently, particularly as the change in government means funding for any repair beyond stabilisation is uncertain.Perhaps the other reason for the silence is that it’s not yet clear whether the Foster Cowi solution is in fact viable.Part of the assessment of the viability of the bridge-within-a-bridge plan is whether the bridge’s piers (built in 1824) can bear the weight of the existing bridge and some of the Foster-Cowi bridge. Engineers have been drilling into the piers to measure their load bearing abilities, but it seems they won’t have an answer until spring 2025. Perhaps by then we might know if the Labour government is willing to commit to funding one third of the repair cost and granting TfL enough money for it to commit a further third. It will also have to approve Hammersmith & Fulham Council’s proposal for a toll on the bridge for the final third to come into play. *For new readers this solution involves constructing a temporary double decker bridge within the bridge which will allow traffic and pedestrians to use the bridge while the major repair of the structure takes place around them. One of its major advantages is also that it allows some of the reconstruction work to take place off site, as portions of the existing bridge would be removed and then taken away by barge before being mended elsewhere and brought back to be re-instated. Local MPs are lobbying for the full repair of Hammersmith BridgeImage above: Rachel Reeves on left, Lousie Haigh on rightHammersmith MP Andy Slaughter has confirmed his commitment to reopening the bridge in full to traffic, and has said that he and his fellow local MPs will be lobbying Transport Minster Louise Haigh to confirm government support for the bridge's repair. Speaking at a Chamber of Commerce meeting in Hammersmith Mr Slaughter described the lack of progress on the repair of the bridge as a national and international embarrassment. While this does seem to improve the prospects of Hammersmith Bridge being repaired in the long term there are still some issues to be overcome. The first impediment will be the government's purse strings which will be tight after Chancellor Rachel Reeves' assertion that the previous Conservative government has left the new administration with a £20 billion fiscal hole. The second is that the actual costs of repairing the bridge are far from clear. Given that the viability of the Foster Cowi solution won't be known until spring next year, it's unlikely that a fair estimate of cost will be in place until mid next year. The Department for Transport is unlikely to write a blank cheque so it looks unlikely that there will be any firm commitment from government until the route forward to repair is more certain. Hammersmith Bridge to completely close for four days this autumnA crucial part of the bridge’s stabilisation process involves jacking up the bearings of its four pedestals, and this process is planned for each of the pedestals this autumn. While this is being done separately for each pedestal, the bridge will be completely closed for a 24-hour period. We don’t have dates for these closures, but we do know that they are planned to start on Friday evenings after the commuter rush and carry on for 24 hours into Saturday on each occasion.
Adrian Irving ● 74d2 Comments