Hammersmith Bridge is open again

Closed

Note the thread title that skydancer gave to this. It is fundamentally mistaken to say that the bridge is currently 'closed'. I know it may seem like a silly little point that can be annoying when re-iterated, but the bridge still carries a lot of traffic, and there are currently no proposals at all to stop it carrying traffic. I know it's not an implication that either wildwest or PhilDAS intend, but the bridge is not 'closed'. Obviously, it's also slightly misleading, if in an educational and tongue-in-cheek way, to say that the bridge is now 'open' when it is filtered to exclude motor traffic, as skydancer does, but all things considered this is closer to the truth at the moment.

Plans that (fortunately) haven't worked out, but they're bound to keep wanting to restore the status quo for some time yet:

Marine consulting engineers Beckett Rankine last week suggested a temporary bridge after the total cost of fixing the Grade II* listed, council-owned crossing was estimated at £120 million, with no obvious source of funds.

Labour-run Hammersmith and Fulham today told the Standard that the Beckett Rankine proposal, involving sinking piles into the river bed and potentially having to purchase properties near the new route, was a non-starter.

A spokesman said: “The expert advice is that this proposal is not feasible in the space available and at an affordable cost. We are therefore not pursuing this option. Work is already under way for the complete refurbishment of Hammersmith bridge.”

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/fresh-idea-floated-for-hammersmith-bridge-as-temporary-crossing-is-sunk-a4272051.html

There is such a strange approach to this bridge filtering.

Cyclists dismount signs on the North approach heading south since they've narrowed the road (seemingly to leave space for some bridge repair vehicles to park)

H&F Person in hi viz these to ensure walkers and joggers don't go on the road but stick to the narrow pavements.

So many cones everywhere. Another approach, some planters a few benches, would be so much more civilised

You do see far fewer mopeds head over the bridge since you have to dismount.

Did see one moped rider take the brave steps and shook my head at him (very British), and he told me to ‘fuck off you twat’ (also very British), which was nice.

It has made me want to practice Cx dismounts and mounts away from prying eyes to avoid stacking it in front of people.

A brief full closure for the Boat Race:

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/safety-fears-will-close-hammersmith-bridge-to-boat-race-crowds-a4377046.html

apparently the bridge is fully closed according to the ES.
Due to the recent heat, cracks have worsened so cyclists and pedestrians are banned for now.

And boats from going under as well (edit: at least some of the arches). Sounds serious.

That sounds bad

Yeah went over on Sunday and the guys were spraying water over the bridge, I assumed to clean it up, but maybe this was an attempt to cool it. Everyone looked kind of worried, which I thought was weird at the time

Looks like they've spotted hairline cracks in cast iron. And apparently it can shatter unlike steel.
Isn't cast iron weldable?

I am not a welder.
Seems to depend upon the nature of the 'cast iron',
and,
the requirement for pre-heating is probably impractical for bridge components in-situ.
https://www.twi-global.com/technical-knowledge/job-knowledge/weldability-of-materials-cast-irons-025

I know that cast iron engine blocks can be repaired..perhaps this is a different kettle of fish.

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/hammersmith-vauxhall-bridge-closures-chaos-a4529316.html

I've not noticed any chaos at Vauxhall. In fact it's much more pleasant than usual, with greatly reduced congestion.

There are very clear rules for reporting any kind of roadworks/bridge repairs/other traffic disruption: They ALWAYS cause chaos, and the press has a sacred duty to whip up its readers' feelings. Anyone who questions this must have a heart of stone. :)

Absolute chaos on Tuesday!

This latest would appear to put paid to the plan to restore the bridge for general road traffic. Too bad eh?

Now that's the spirit!

Why? All that's missing is funding to repair it. Admittedly, that will be a major job, but it's still by far the best option. The threat hanging over all this is that they might demolish the bridge and build a modern, higher-capacity one, or a pastiche bridge, in its place. Sure, it's Grade II* listed, but that can theoretically be overcome. So far, I've seen no suggestion that it's not repairable, though, and I expect that this will eventually happen. It could be some time.

I've seen them demolish many listed building over the years, its all possible.
Although its quite historically important, and its likely to meet serious resistance, it could go.
Deapite the problem being the structure, I never understood why the road surface deteriorated so quick after frequent resurfacing. Always wondered why?

I never understood why the road surface deteriorated so quick after frequent resurfacing. Always wondered why?

From riding over it it seems like the whole structure is pretty flexible, and I feel like the movement constantly disturbs the road surface

Sounds like this would make a nice gravel bridge.

General vehicular traffic across the Hammersmith Bridge makes riding up Castelnau and crossing by the Bridge unpleasant. I imagine — though I have no information on this point — that it can be made safe and usable for cyclists and pedestrians at much less cost than rebuilding it for general traffic. If the latter solution is adopted, it cannot possibly be delivered before end 2023 when transport patterns in west London may look altogether different than they did several years ago.

I agree completely, but while I imagine H&F council would be in favour of the latter solution, I suspect they may have pressure piled on them by Richmond and the (currently Tory) Government. We'll see.