Engineers will resume stabilisation works on Grade II* listed Hammersmith Bridge on Tuesday May 28.
This will see the removal of the temporary two-way cycle lane and cyclists will still be able to cross the bridge by dismounting and walking their bikes across on the footpaths.
The final step of the Phase One stabilisation programme features the replacement of the 136-year-old suspension bridge’s bearings which have seized.
Hydraulic jacks will lift the bridge off its pedestals to allow the new rubber bearings to be installed.Engineers will also reinstall steel plates on the pedestals with a crane.
There will be a short series of 24-hour weekend closures of the bridge to pedestrians and cyclists while the jacking up and bearings replacement takes place.
Completion of stabilisation had to be suspended due to the requirement for some refabricated steel plates for the pedestals, while damage caused to the bridge’s gantry by a boat carrying West Ham football fans has made it difficult to carry out safety checks.
The gantry is expected to be repaired by the end of May enabling safety checks to recommence. We hope to complete the jacking up and bearings replacement by the end of the year.
Hammersmith & Fulham Council will then repair the carriageway, install a new cycle lane, and review e-mobility options to shuttle residents across the bridge, notably older and Disabled people, subject to a 1.5-tonne vehicle weight limit imposed by safety experts.
The Department for Transport has agreed to H&F’s request for funding towards carriageway repair and installation of the new cycle lane.
Hammersmith Bridge was at risk of catastrophic collapse when we made the decision to fully close it on public safety grounds. Since 2019 we have spent £39m to keep it safe and to push on with the hugely complex repairs of what is an ancient suspension structure riddled with 70 years of untreated corrosion.
We are committed to the full re-opening of the bridge to motor vehicles including buses. But we are a small local authority with very limited funding, and we must have the financial support of the Department for Transport (DfT) and Transport for London, as well as an agreement to fund our share via a toll.
The total cost of repair is estimated currently at £250m. In contrast, spending on all the maintenance and repair of all London road and river bridges was just £100m between 2010 and 2021, according to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
Unfortunately, the DfT has once again delayed consideration of Hammersmith & Fulham’s business case for the full restoration of the bridge. It was formally submitted to the DfT one year ago and had been expected to be agreed before Christmas and then again in the New Year. However it was dropped from the agenda for both investment board meetings due to issues within the DfT.
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