Hammersmith Bridge closed to motor vehicles "indefinitely"

[FridgeMagnet]

Bus drivers?

Yes. Actually I misremembered a bit - the barrier was supposed to block everything apart from buses, but the system to let them through didn't work properly and so drivers often just dismantled the barrier.

Bus drivers caught tearing down Hammersmith Bridge safety barrier

 

[Pickman's model]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-47891838

It's always been a weak bridge with a "one bus at a time" rule, but the latest checks have revealed serious flaws. TfL has no money to repair it (thanks to central govt. removing all grant funding) so it'll just have to be closed. Great work!

you won't like this

LocalGov.co.uk - Your authority on UK local government - Hammersmith Bridge could take three years to repair

 

[hash tag]

Well, it's no problem to me, though I wonder if it should only reopen to light vehicles, bit like Albert Bridge, especially given that bus drivers were always smashing the barriers
down which tried to prevent more that one bus crossing the bridge at a time. It the buses fault!

 

[TopCat]

Not the buses fault at all.

 

[pseudonarcissus]

M

Not the buses fault at all.

Must be the cyclists then....most things are their fault

 

[Nivag]

Hammersmith Bridge repairs 'could cost £120m'

Thinking outside of the box, this could fund it
Footage shows UK's largest heroin seizure

 

[Teaboy]

Its mad some of the cost of fixing these things. I can understand new bridges but just replacing a few struts?

 

[TopCat]

Its mad some of the cost of fixing these things. I can understand new bridges but just replacing a few struts?

It's design life was not this long.

 

[hash tag]

I can't find mention of life span. It is of course Victorian, designed by the brilliant Air Joseph Bazelgette, who knew he designed bridges. When built, cars had only just been invented. It was not designed to carry the thousands of cars it does today, yet alone buses and lorries for many years. It's a pretty and delicate bridge, it's not surprising it's suffering.
Dont of course forget it was structurally damaged by a bomb in 2000.
It should be left for pedestrians and cyclists only and a new bridge built for motorised traffic.

 

[Teaboy]

Don't bother with a new bridge. The people of Barnes love wanking over the idea they are a village. Well some villages are more isolated than others.

 

[StoneRoad]

A few years ago there was a similar rumpus with the High Level Bridge over the Tyne*.
Turned out (IIRC) that the road deck was timber under a thin layer of tarmac ...

*Banned almost everything crossing at the time. No idea what te current situation is, as I don't live close enough to need it anymore.

 

[farmerbarleymow]

A few years ago there was a similar rumpus with the High Level Bridge over the Tyne*.
Turned out (IIRC) that the road deck was timber under a thin layer of tarmac ...

*Banned almost everything crossing at the time. No idea what te current situation is, as I don't live close enough to need it anymore.

neonwilderness might know.

Timber makes sense given it'd be lighter than concrete or whatever. I'm surprised the Tyne doesn't have a Transporter Bridge like Teesside - the pretty steep river valley would lend itself to that quite well.

 

[Crispy]

They reinforced it, and protected the columns on the roadway with crash barriers, reducing it to one-way for buses and taxis only.

They could build a second bridge next to Hammersmith Bridge and have one-way traffic on each...

 

[StoneRoad]

neonwilderness might know.

Timber makes sense given it'd be lighter than concrete or whatever. I'm surprised the Tyne doesn't have a Transporter Bridge like Teesside - the pretty steep river valley would lend itself to that quite well.

and without the need for both of the two massive towers.
Probably too much opposition from vested interests on the quayside banks. Also possibly too much traffic on the road as opposed to on the river as most of the river stayed below the swing bridge (apart from stuff going to "Vickers").
which may be why all but the swing bridge are high level routes (ignoring that tilting monstrosity)

 

[farmerbarleymow]

and without the need for both of the two massive towers.
Probably too much opposition from vested interests on the quayside banks. Also possibly too much traffic on the road as opposed to on the river as most of the river stayed below the swing bridge (apart from stuff going to "Vickers").
which may be why all but the swing bridge are high level routes (ignoring that tilting monstrosity)

Yeah, and the Transporter isn't a very efficient bridge given the limit on how many vehicles/people it can ferry across in one go. Maybe a horizontal paternoster-style Transporter bridge would work, with an endless loop of platforms running continuously.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

They could build a second bridge next to Hammersmith Bridge and have one-way traffic on each...

Or simply leave it as it is and accept that anything new encouraging car use in London is mental.

 

[Crispy]

Or simply leave it as it is and accept that anything new encouraging car use in London is mental.

Buses only, natch.
Plenty of essential business traffic on the roads too, unfortunately. Inside the congestion zone there's still lots of traffic, but it's neary all PT and vans/lorries.

 

[Gromit]

TFL has no money to repair it... because it's not their fucking responsibility.

Fixed for you.

Since when do trains go over Hammersmith bridge?

 

[Crispy]

Ah, I thought it was a red route (in which case it would have been their fucking responsibility)

 

[Teaboy]

Fixed for you.

Since when do trains go over Hammersmith bridge?

TFL do manage quite a few roads in London as well.

 

[Gromit]

Ah, I thought it was a red route (in which case it would have been their fucking responsibility)

Nope.
Kew Road bridge to the West is.
A3220 is the next one to the east.

 

[Gromit]

TFL do manage quite a few roads in London as well.

And all the traffic lights. I know I sat through a speech about all that about 3 and a half years ago.

 

[Teaboy]

TFL have stumped up some cash it seems and it will be open again, although with restrictions.

Work begins to repair Hammersmith Bridge - London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

 

[FridgeMagnet]

TFL were somehow responsible for ripping up the road outside my window a few years ago with scary anime-scale machines up to midnight, so they can fucking shell out for this.

 

[TopCat]

TFL were somehow responsible for ripping up the road outside my window a few years ago with scary anime-scale machines up to midnight, so they can fucking shell out for this.

Why should Tfl pay? Any spend comes from fare income. Tax all houses within a mile of the bridge that have a £1,000,000 plus price tag.

 

[FridgeMagnet]

Why should Tfl pay? Any spend comes from fare income. Tax all houses within a mile of the bridge that have a £1,000,000 plus price tag.

Well, I mean, ideally eliminate all public transport fares and pay for all public infrastructure with massively increased income, corporation and property taxes.

 

[neonwilderness]

They reinforced it, and protected the columns on the roadway with crash barriers, reducing it to one-way for buses and taxis only.

Yep, it’s only open to southbound traffic now. Northbound uses the Tyne Bridge. I believe there’s a weight limit on the rail deck too.

 

[skyscraper101]

In my version of the world, they'd be building a road tunnel underneath for proper double deckers and cars to go through, and closing the bridge entirely to motor vehicles.

Even when fixed this is still not going to resolve the issue that there are too many people needing to take a bus over it, but only single decker buses and managed traffic flow will be allowed. It's bullshit to do yet another expensive temporary patch-up job on an antique bridge designed for horses and penny farthings. Before it was closed, I had to regularly wait 2 or 3 buses due to overcrowding in the morning, and often sat in queues of traffic on the northside waiting to cross back to Barnes.

Replacing it, or building another bridge isn't an option because Grade II with protected views.

Tunnel FTW.

 

[Gromit]

In my version of the world, they'd be building a road tunnel underneath for proper double deckers and cars to go through, and closing the bridge entirely to motor vehicles.

Even when fixed this is still not going to resolve the issue that there are too many people needing to take a bus over it, but only single decker buses and managed traffic flow will be allowed. It's bullshit to do yet another expensive temporary patch-up job on an antique bridge designed for horses and penny farthings. Before it was closed, I had to regularly wait 2 or 3 buses due to overcrowding in the morning, and often sat in queues of traffic on the northside waiting to cross back to Barnes.

Replacing it, or building another bridge isn't an option because Grade II with protected views.

Tunnel FTW.

Building another bridge is an option. You build it by the side of the existing one, leaving the existing one in place.

 

[skyscraper101]

Building another bridge is an option. You build it by the side of the existing one, leaving the existing one in place.

You can’t because Hammersmith Bridge is grade 2 listed and has protected views that can’t be ‘ruined’ by having an unsightly second bridge.