Update – Hammersmith Bridge March 2023 

I attended a meeting on Friday 10^th March with Fosters Architects to discuss their proposals for Hammersmith Bridge.

I have been campaigning for years for Hammersmith Bridge to be reopened to vehicles, including buses, in order to ease the congestion which causes chaos and high levels of air pollution on Putney High Street and the surrounding area. Reopening the bridge will also be better for cyclists, and would-be cyclists, in Putney.

I was extremely pleased to hear that Fosters Architects are planning to submit their planning proposals to Hammersmith and Fulham Council in May 2023. This marks an extremely welcome step forwards to the Bridge being reopened.

My priorities for Hammersmith Bridge, at all stages of reconstruction, are:

• The works are completed as quickly as possible to end the nightmare of extreme congestion on Putney High Street.
• Cycling and pedestrian access are at the forefront of all new plans for Hammersmith Bridge
• Hammersmith Bridge remains free for all vehicles, including buses, pedestrians and cycles, without a toll.

The proposals of Fosters Architects involve a temporary, double-decker structure on Hammersmith Bridge – enabling pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles, including single decker buses, to cross. This will enable parts of the historic bridge to be removed, by barge, inspected and restored offsite.

Costings and definite timeline are currently not certain. I will be pushing for clarity on these points to be shared publicly so that residents are able to have certainty about the project as a whole. The question is: who is going to fund this? The business proposal has been submitted by Hammersmith and Fulham to the Department for Transport, and the cost of the project is going up all the time.

Overall, I hope that this will be one step closer to the bridge eventually being reopened, which I’ve been campaigning for for several years. I have now raised it 20 times in Parliament.

The public consultation will be live at this page from Saturday 25th March 2023. Please ensure to submit your thoughts and share widely.

There are in-person consultation events where you can see the proposals at the following dates and times:

St Paul’s Centre, Queen Caroline Street, London W6 9P

• Saturday 25 March, 11am – 2pm
• Monday 27 March, 4pm – 8pm

St Paul’s School, Lonsdale Road, London SW13 9JT

• Tuesday 28 March, 4pm – 8pm
• Saturday 1 April, 11am – 2pm