A bridge that rolls over to allow boats to pass through, and then back for humans to cross could be built at Canning Town.
The elegant Cody Dock Rolling Bridge aims to create an easier link between the Cody Wilds and the new Lea River Park that links Canning Town to 26 miles of towpath walks along the Lea Valley.
The bridge will also enable Cody Dock to re-open to boats for the first time in over 50 years.
(c) Cody Dock Rolling Bridge
What’s exciting about the project is the simplicity and yet amazing design of the bridge. It looks like a normal pedestrian bridge across the docks, but when boats need to pass, it quite literally flips upside down to create enough space for small boats.
Morphs not included
Designed by Tom Randall-Page this contemporary bridge design is also an architectural first.
They have planning permission for the bridge, and are now fundraising to build it. As they have signed up some 7,000 local supporters that has unlocked a pledge of £40,000 to come from London City Hall, if the remainder of the £200,000 funding can also be secured.
Every crowd funding donor will have their name cast in metal to provide a lasting record of their connection with this chapter in Cody Dock’s history.
More details about the fundraising efforts here.
(c) Cody Dock Rolling Bridge
That will surely become a tourist attraction. A simple but snazzy idea.
As long as boaters remember to put the bridge back (they often leave lock gates open leading to more work for those that follows) it should work.
But a pulley to raise it only on one side of the lock could also cause problem – if a boater hasn’t returned the bridge back and there are pedestrians only on the ‘wrong’ side – how do they put the bridge back in place?
Good point, although of course having controls on both sides could lead to the mischief of one side lowering and the other side raising the bridge…
If the worst comes to the worst, your stranded tow path walkers could attempt to clamber over the gantry carrying the pipes, the larger one but that crosses Bow Creek or retrace their steps of course all the way back past the Sainsbury, Amazon and Menzies massive distribution sheds.
I remind you what I have written in the past about reading too much into computer generated images of thing that haven’t been built yet.
Seems it would be much simpler to just build a bridge with a higher clearance underneath it. Stairs anyone…?
A longer route for pedestrians with limited accessibility for wheelchairs and bicycles — does not seem like an improvement.
Stairs are not so good for wheelchairs, prams, bicycles, older people, small children…
And any rubbish left on the bridge just gets dumped in the water?!
Huh?
Yob-lobbed refuse resulting in beautifully barmy bridge being binned?
Rubbish! Would be a travesty.
It would be dumped on the boat underneath, which is a pretty good incentive for the boat owner to check the bridge for debris before using it.
Using this idea – you could have trains with square wheels. It might work if the track was suitably designed with “hill and dale” construction.