£8.5 million is needed to fully restore the bridge which shut to motorists in February
The Mayor of London has ruled out using Transport for London (TfL) funds to help pay for the repair of Albert Bridge. The West London crossing was forced to shut in February after engineers discovered a significant crack in a cast iron component.
Although Albert Bridge was deemed safe to reopen to pedestrians and cyclists in April, £8.5m of repairs are needed before motorists can use it once more. Sir Sadiq Khan is now being pressured by London Assembly members to share the burden with Kensington and Chelsea Council which is currently funding the repairs without any outside help.
But responding to a question raised by Liberal Democrat Hina Bokhari raised at City Hall, Sir Sadiq said TfL “is not sufficiently funded to take on the financial burden of an asset which is not its own”.
He added: “The responsibility for renewing and funding upgrades to Albert Bridge sits with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea as the bridge owner. Transport for London and I will continue to support the borough as far as possible.”
Sir Sadiq pressed that signal changes on TfL-owned roads at both approaches have helped ease congestion, improve flow and redistribute traffic to Battersea and Chelsea bridges.
The Mayor is also facing calls from Wandsworth Council to take control of Hammersmith Bridge which has been shut to all motorists since 2019. A full restoration of the Victorian crossing is estimated to cost £300m, leading to Hammersmith and Fulham Council shelving plans for cars and instead pursuing a scaled-back £128m phased repair that would keep it safe for walkers and cyclists.
New Wandsworth Council leader Robert Morritt has described Hammersmith Bridge as a strategic London issue that needs clear mayoral leadership to end the saga which has dragged on since 2019.
“This is a moment for leadership, not managed decline,” he said. “After seven years of disruption, the time has come to transfer responsibility for Hammersmith Bridge to the Mayor of London, with the powers and funding needed to get this strategic crossing properly restored.
“Residents in Putney, Roehampton and across Wandsworth cannot be left with a half-baked plan that keeps Hammersmith Bridge permanently out of reach for buses, emergency vehicles and ordinary traffic.”
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