Tory and Labour councillors spar over £300m Hammersmith Bridge plans
Tensions are mounting between Labour and Tory councillors in nearby authorities over restoration plans for Hammersmith Bridge, which has been closed to motorists for seven years.
Arch rivals in Hammersmith & Fulham and Wandsworth councils have sparred over an application to a £1bn government fund for infrastructure.
The lack of progress over the bridge’s repair has infuriated workers commuting in the area, drawn several protests and led to higher levels of traffic across the south of the river.
But the blockage between Barnes and Hammersmith has now become a hot-button issue for politicians across London who have accused the local authority of “kicking the can down the road”.
Labour councillors in Hammersmith & Fulham wrote to councillors in neighbouring authorities requesting “stakeholder support” in order to get funding for the bridge approved.
The local authority revealed it had submitted a £128m bid to the Department for Transport in order to keep the bridge open to pedestrians and cyclists.
But Conservative Party councillors hit back at the appeal for support by claiming that the bid “falls short of our expectations” while adding that a decision not to include a proposal to offer motorists full access to the bridge after repair works was “bewildering”.
“To date, no meaningful engagement has taken place with our senior officers regarding how this proposal might be progressed, nor has the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce met for over a year. This lack of communication and stakeholder engagement is unacceptable,” Wandsworth Council leader Robert Morritt wrote in a letter.
The spiralling cost of repairing Hammersmith Bridge
The council south of the Thames, which is now Tory-run after the May elections, said it supported a plan designed by the architecture giant Foster and Partners to create a double-decker crossing that would “potentially” allow cars and some other motorists to pass over the river Thames while the bridge is repaired. Pedestrians would pass on a lower deck and cars on an upper deck.
Architects said the complex plan for a temporary crossing would allow constructors to take away parts of the Grade II-listed bridge for restoration.
But local and national officials have so far struggled to find a middle ground on whether restoring access to motorists should be given greater funding, with costs for bridge repairs quickly racking up.
In July, councillors reported that a proposal for full restoration of motor traffic would cost £300m – just under half the cost of keeping it open to pedestrians – and that there was “no financial option available” to fund construction. A report shared in a Hammersmith & Fulham meeting said the council was advised by the Labour government to bid for a “phased repair” that allowed cyclists and pedestrians to retain access to crossings.
The report also emphasised the bridge was an “iconic symbol of London” and that any repair works needed to consider “impact on carbon emissions”. Hammersmith & Fulham’s bid to the government hinges on all funds being spent by April 2030 and “local contributions” being given priorities.
Management consultants and “specialist bridge consultants” preparing the council’s bid was also estimated to cost around £200,000.
Labour councillors reject Tory claims
Labour councillor Nicole Trehy, who oversees a transport brief for Hammersmith & Fulham, said Wandsworth’s response came two days after a deadline for submissions to the government fund had passed. The letter had asked for responses by Friday 16 July, though Wandsworth councillors found this unfair as the election for the council’s leadership was held a day before.
She also hit out at Wandsworth, the council which is adjacent to the nearest crossing at Putney Bridge, for failing to offer a contribution towards the cost of the bridge or supporting £58m already spent on keeping the bridge partly open. Tory councillors in Wandsworth said they never requested help from Hammersmith & Fulham when repairs to Wandsworth Bridge have been required.
Trehy added that the previous Conservative government failed to reimburse councils for the “agreed share of our spending on bridge repairs”. The £128m bid, according to her, was to ensure the bridge remained open to pedestrians and cyclists “regardless of any longer-term debate about motor vehicles”.
“Briefing against this funding bid risks exactly the opposite outcome: the complete closure of Hammersmith Bridge, including to Wandsworth residents who rely on it,” Trehy said in a statement issued to City AM.
“It is a matter of deep regret that a neighbouring borough, with so much to gain from the bridge remaining open, seeks to damage our bid – and the travel options of its own residents – by playing political games.”
The fight over the future of Hammersmith Bridge has also extended beyond neighbouring councillors. Westminster Council member Festus Akinbusoye weighed in on the matter, telling City AM that Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government should prioritise Hammersmith Bridge’s repair to show it was “serious about place-based growth”.
Tories and Labour officials have also fallen out over whether repair powers should be handed to the mayor of London and Transport for London chair, Sir Sadiq Khan, with Tories suggesting that the Labour leader should intervene. The mayor did not respond to requests for comment but the mayor has previously held that this was an issue for the council and the government to work out.