Heatherwick bridges - fussy, expensive - shelved

It's interesting to note that a previous Heatherwick bridge scheme for London was cancelled in 2008, on the grounds of cost.

It was to be at the 'Peninsula' development at Canning Town, and was supposed to be suspended or braced directly from tower blocks (free register to read or click here and scroll down). [endif] [endif]Whether this cancellation was because the scheme risked going over budget, or whether it was fall-out from the impending financial crisis, isn't clear from the article. Either way, London has somehow managed to carry on being creative, inspirational etc. despite having lost its chance to acquire a Heatherwick bridge. [endif]

And here's news of another more recent Heatherwick cancellation due to complicated design, materials and spiralling cost: The Glass Bridge over Regent's Canal.

http://www.camdennewjournal.com/news/2012/jul/recession-blamed-king%E2%80%99s-cross-developer-shelves-plan-%E2%80%98spectacularly-lit%E2%80%99-glass-bridge-

At over £5 million pounds, the 16 metre glass bridge cost almost as much as the whole of Granary Square in King's Cross which measures 12,000m2, and offers the same amount of space as Trafalgar Square - so pound per square metre, Heatherwick offers very poor value for money.

[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]So what do these two private schemes for Heatherwick-designed bridges have in common? Lack of access to huge sums of money private or public - although Heatherwick is now designing Argent's Coal Yard project almost by way of compensation for his glass 'bath tray' bridge disappointment.

[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]Meanwhile a competition for a new £77m bridge in Suffolk has been launched whilst a road bridge crumbles in Barrow upon Soar; Southern Railways is in crisis and Jeremy Corbyn calls for it to be renationalised. Sadiq Khan has given the green light for a new cycle superhighway from Swiss Cottage to the West End - but how will he fund it? And Transport for the North is crying out for more funding to bridge the north-south divide.

At a time when the Department for Transport has far more pressing worries, should the Secretary of State for Transport Chris Grayling really be doing business with Heatherwick's hapless chums, the Garden Bridge Trust?

Write to him and tell him what you think: chris.grayling.mp@parliament.uk

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