A major set of upgrades at Lambeth Bridge will begin their next phase later this week, as part of Transport for London’s (TfL) bid to make the crossing safer for cyclists.TfL commissioner Andy Lord talked to The Standard about the upgrades soon taking place at Lambeth Bridge.
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00:00Well, it's really important that we do make these changes at both ends of the bridge.
00:05It's been a really difficult location for cyclist safety.
00:10We're removing the roundabouts, putting in signal junctions that will change the layout
00:14and make the junctions at both ends of the bridge much safer for both cyclists and pedestrians
00:18and we believe improve the traffic flow.
00:21I'd like to apologise for the disruption that's obviously going to be caused during these works
00:25but it's really, really essential we do that.
00:27At the same time, we're taking the opportunity to do some remedial works to the bridge,
00:31improving the waterproofing which will extend the life of the bridge
00:35and make sure that it remains such a fantastic river crossing for us.
00:39How much of a concern is the longevity of London's bridges?
00:43So many of them are over a century old.
00:45This week the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce is reconvening.
00:48Is that a growing issue on TfL's agenda in any way?
00:51Well, I think infrastructure generally across the UK needs to continue to be invested in
00:56and that's why we've been making the case to government around the long-term capital funding
01:00that we need similar to network rail and national highways.
01:03The Tube network is over 160 years old.
01:06Some of the infrastructure is original infrastructure, same as the river crossing.
01:10So you can't just build new infrastructure and then not maintain it and repair and renew it when required.
01:16So it is critical that all infrastructure organisations have the funds to undertake the significant works
01:22that are required to keep those assets fully in use
01:25and, of course, safe.
01:26Just finally, TfL will be part of the discussions, I hope, later this week
01:32that the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce government is reconvening that after three years of it lying dormant.
01:38What are you hoping will come out of those discussions?
01:40Well, we've got a very open mind.
01:42I hope that we can all work together to find a solution that will enable us to remove the uncertainty that currently exists.
01:50It's clearly a frustration for residents on both sides of the river
01:54and we want to play an active role in that.
01:57But, of course, we need to have the funds made available
02:00for whichever organisation is going to be responsible for undertaking the works.
02:04I'm sure we'll have a fruitful conversation
02:06and I think we won't see what comes out of that at the end of the week.