Long Term Hammersmith Road Traffic Problems Predicted

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Restrictions to apply beyond implementation of Congestion Charge

Concerns have been raised that traffic chaos could result from the continued restrictions that apply to the bridge on Hammersmith Road. This takes cars over the tube and train tracks near Olympia.

The bridge, is currently well below the required capacity for accommodating 40-tonne vehicles. As a result, restrictions to both the number of lanes on the bridge and vehicle weight limits have been in place. These were untenable in the long term given the volume of traffic on this stretch of road.

However, the extension of the restrictions mean that they will continue to apply after the congestion charge has been introduced. The proximity of the area to the new congestion charge zone is likely to mean serious traffic problems according to critics.

Local Conservatives claim that local residents are furious, as they have to endure ongoing traffic problems, especially when there are events on at Olympia.

Commenting, Avonmore & Brook Green Conservative Councillor William Bethell said, "If Ken Livingstone presses ahead with his plans to extend the Congestion Charge, it will be mayhem, as more traffic will be pushed down Holland Road and Hammersmith Road. This is a residential area, and TfL should listen to the residents, rather than coming up with crackpot plans, such as extending the C1 bus route to go down Blythe Road. What we need is common sense; this is madness."

The bridge is 105 years-old and carries traffic over Network Rail and London Underground railway lines. It is located on the A315 (Kensington High Street - Hammersmith Road), close to Olympia. Originally constructed with cast-iron girders supported by bricks, the bridge cannot currently larger vehicles. As a result, restrictions to both the number of lanes on the bridge and vehicle weight have been in place since 1999.

The bridge is to be strengthen by the installation of carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) plates, a technique that has been employed on nearly four hundred sites over the past ten years in the UK. The new system will be relatively easy to install and, unlike steel structures will not corrode.

March 7, 2006