Bridging the gap: signals and stories from Barnes, 2050
Story 171: Tending to the important, not just the urgent.
What does a climate-ready Barnes actually look like?
Bridged2050 is a local think-tank dedicated to the systems—the way we move, work, and connect—that will determine our future. It’s a long game, but the prize is a community where we all thrive rather than just survive.
What follows are some of the latest signals - and stories - gathered from that 2050 horizon.
Hammersmith Bridge
A timely reminder, first: according to its owners, Hammersmith & Fulham council, climate change that did for Hammersmith Bridge in 2019. Small fractures in the cast-iron structure were widening. Cracks risked sudden failure. The safety threat was real.
Cracks, climate, carbon, cars. Remember that ..
The fallout from double demo Saturday continues. Fleur Anderson MP (Labour, Putney) has emailed those attended. What does she mean by ‘families being cut off’ and ‘reconnecting our communities’?
Joe Hill, writing for the Greater London Project also left me puzzled with his call to restore the bridge. Is the choice, no car Bridge or no travel? Are local residents ‘overwhelmingly’ in favour of re-opening the Bridge? And if induced demand is ‘ultimately a good thing’, is there any limit to how many cars we can have in London?
Nick Maini follows his excellent survey of the Bridge, with a practical suggestion as to how to fund Pods for those residents who cannot easily walk or cycle across.
The car that changed the world
This is significant choice (££ Paywall) by AutoExpress given 50 years of candidates. Their ‘car that changed the world’ reflects a shift away from pure internal combustion, via hybrids, towards electric vehicles.
Electric vehicles would, of course, be the best choice. But hybrids whether full or hybrid show sentiment is changing. Maybe in ten years time AutoExpress will choose an BYD model to mark the end of the migration?
Now back to the hard work: reducing the number of private vehicles - whatever their engine type - on our roads.
School streets
Richmond council is launching three more School Streets trials, adding to the 19 completed. Each trial has a bespoke design. One of the new batch is around Barnes Primary, close to where I live.
Good to see Richmond council using trials in this way. Two have been subject to change and one has been withdrawn.
Side road zebras
Bridged loves side road zebras. Pedestrian-first with 80% of the benefit and at a fraction of the cost of a full crossing
Max Sullivan, a Westminster councillor writes at length about his work on promoting them. If you like diagrams like the one below then read on.
Sullivan also links to this historical video reports - one explains the history of modern crossings and the other the introduction of the UK’s first Zebra Crossing.
Going Dutch?
New research comparing London and Amsterdam is revealing. In Amsterdam, women account for 55 per cent of cyclists. In London, just 26 per cent. The gap says less about confidence and more about conditions, including the role of bike helmets.
Amsterdam has become the world’s first capital city to ban SUV ads in public spaces. They are also thinking of banning ‘fatbikes’. Yes to banning SUV ads: marvels of engineering with no place in the private car fleet in London. No to fatbikes until they’ve been correctly categorised as electric motorbikes.
Lime bike’s policy director argues London should follow Amsterdam and Copenhagen by retiming traffic lights to reward safe cyclists.
The Lime bike Wars continues, this time in Islington. Round what, 59?
Elsewhere the Amish - arguably America’s most sophisticated users of technology, judging each innovation by whether or not it helps the community - are embracing e-bikes.
Richmond council has installed 104 bikehangars across the borough, an increase of 98 in six years ago. And I am loving mine.
So, so expensive
Stag Brewery - the only realistic source of significant new housing in Barnes and Mortlake, even if much of it will not be affordable - has taken two steps forward, one back, according to Mortlake Brewery Community Group.
More broadly house-building in London has fallen by 84% in a decade according to a new study.
Rents tell the same story. The Economist’s Carrie Shaw Index suggests that renting a one-bed flat in London now absorbs around 44% of the average London salary.
None of this is sustainable. All of it shapes who gets to belong.
Green and blue landscapes
Good to see the works at Barnes Green have been completed. The project has carefully redirected the river into the Green, with reseeding the area to follow as the ground settles. More climate adaptation done well. The explanation of why the Green flooded during the recent heavy rain is worth your time.
Another new linear park, this time Belem, Brazil. Imagine something like this running the length of Castlenau.
Commerce
M&S Foodhall at Kew is growing.
And finally, an encouraging collaboration between retail and civic groups. The slogan for Bridged is Live. Work. Play. Belong. That last word is important.
Last week saw the launch of the Tuesday Local, from the Barnes Community Association (BCA). The second edition was even better attended than the first. BCA also announced another new Tuesday offer, this time with wine merchants Lea & Sanderman from Barnes High Street. You’ll need to turn up next Tuesday to find out more.
