A £128m Hammersmith Bridge funding bid submitted to the Department for Transport has become the latest flashpoint in a prolonged political dispute between Labour-run Hammersmith & Fulham and the newly Tory-run Wandsworth Council, with both sides accusing the other of endangering a crossing that has been closed to motorists for seven years.
Hammersmith & Fulham applied to a £1bn government infrastructure fund to keep the bridge open to pedestrians and cyclists, framing the bid as a necessary first step regardless of any longer-term debate about restoring motor access. Wandsworth pushed back, arguing the proposal fell short and that the exclusion of a plan to reinstate full vehicle access was “bewildering”.
The Hammersmith Bridge funding bid and the political deadlock
Robert Morritt, Wandsworth Council’s leader, set out his objections in a letter. “To date, no meaningful engagement has taken place with our senior officers regarding how this proposal might be progressed, nor has the Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce met for over a year. This lack of communication and stakeholder engagement is unacceptable,” he wrote.
Labour councillor Nicole Trehy, who oversees a transport brief for Hammersmith & Fulham, responded by pointing out that Wandsworth’s letter arrived two days after the submission deadline had passed. The request for stakeholder responses had asked for replies by Friday 16 July, though Wandsworth councillors said the timing was unfair given the election for the council’s leadership had been held the day before.
Trehy also challenged Wandsworth to explain why it had not contributed towards the £58m already spent on keeping the bridge partly open, and noted that the previous Conservative government had failed to reimburse councils for what she described as the “agreed share of our spending on bridge repairs”. Tory councillors in Wandsworth countered that they had never sought help from Hammersmith & Fulham when repairs to Wandsworth Bridge had been required.
“Briefing against this funding bid risks exactly the opposite outcome: the complete closure of Hammersmith Bridge, including to Wandsworth residents who rely on it,” Trehy said in a statement issued to City AM. “It is a matter of deep regret that a neighbouring borough, with so much to gain from the bridge remaining open, seeks to damage our bid (and the travel options of its own residents) by playing political games.”
How much has the government already put in?
The row over the £128m bid sits against a backdrop of modest central funding relative to the scale of the repair task. According to UK Parliament Hansard, total government funding for the bridge to date stands at £17 million. In March 2025, the Department provided the borough with £4.7 million for repairs to bridge hangers, a component of that cumulative figure. Separately, new decking for the bridge was funded by a £2.9m grant from the Department for Transport, according to Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
Hansard records also show that Hammersmith & Fulham is expected to fund around 33% of the total cost of repairs, a local contribution requirement that sits at the heart of the funding debate. The current bid makes clear that the council’s application hinges on all funds being spent by April 2030 and on local contributions being prioritised. Management consultants and specialist bridge consultants preparing the bid were estimated to cost around £200,000.
The scale of full restoration is what makes the political dispute so charged. Councillors reported in July that a proposal for full restoration of motor traffic would cost £300m, with no financial option currently available to fund it. By contrast, the £128m pedestrian and cyclist bid represents a phased approach that the Labour government reportedly advised the council to pursue.
Wandsworth has backed an alternative proposal from Foster and Partners for a temporary double-decker crossing that would allow vehicles to use an upper deck while pedestrians used a lower one, and would enable sections of the Grade II-listed bridge to be removed for restoration. Architects said the structure would let constructors take away parts of the bridge. But agreement on funding such a scheme has so far proved elusive.
The dispute has drawn in politicians beyond the two neighbouring boroughs. Westminster Council member Festus Akinbusoye told City AM that Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government should prioritise the bridge’s repair to demonstrate it was “serious about place-based growth”. Tory and Labour figures have also disagreed over whether oversight of the project should be handed to the Mayor of London and Transport for London chair Sir Sadiq Khan. The mayor did not respond to requests for comment but has previously said the matter was one for the council and the government to resolve between them.
With the £128m Hammersmith Bridge funding bid now formally lodged and the deadline passed, the next test is whether the Department for Transport approves it, and whether Wandsworth’s public opposition has done any lasting damage to the application’s chances.
