Our vision for a car-free crossing in London.
It has been four years since Hammersmith bridge was closed to motor traffic, and work is currently underway to transform the bridge into a green and pleasant thoroughfare for sustainable modes of traffic and walking.
While some still look backwards to a time when cars could cross the river here, there is no money to pay for the epic work which would be needed to rebuild this Victorian bridge to the engineering standard required to carry heavy traffic.
Our goal is to solve the problems which the loss of a bus connection here has caused for local people and businesses, while keeping Hammersmith Bridge closed to private cars permanently. This will reduce traffic, cut carbon, clean the air, and restore this beautiful grade II listed structure as a bridge people can walk and cycle across or simply visit to enjoy the tranquility of the river. For those who cannot travel under their own steam, we have designed a future-facing solution via a brand new form of public transport - electric, driverless shuttles to carry bus passengers from Barnes right into Hammersmith town centre.
The Mayor of London and Hammersmith & Fulham council have both committed to ambitious and commendable climate targets which require car traffic levels to fall by well over a quarter by 2030 and politicians have committed to taking urgent action on air pollution which continues to plague Londoners on a daily basis.
Without motor traffic, Hammersmith bridge can serve as an iconic real-world example of how much better our cities could be if motor traffic levels are reduced in line with our climate and air pollution commitments.