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ITEM TIC12 - ANNEX 3

TRANSPORT IMPLEMENTATION COMMITTEE –
27 NOVEMBER 2003

A POSSIBLE NEW FOOT/CYCLE BRIDGE CROSSING OF THE RIVER THAMES AT BABLOCK HYTHE

Suggested Alternative Locations for the New Thames Crossing

Skinners Bridge Site

There was a footbridge at this site until the early 1940s when it was destroyed by fire. Due to financial limitations the bridge has never been replaced. During the 1990s, a local resident successfully proved that a public right of way on foot existed across the Thames at the Skinners site and, as a result, an obligation was imposed on the County Council to replace the bridge. Due to the cost of a new footbridge (likely to be in the region of £250,000), and the limitations of the relevant rural footbridge budget (£60,000 for the whole county in 2003/04) the County Council has been unable to fulfil its obligation. It is unlikely to be able to do so in the foreseeable future.

It has been suggested that building a foot/cycle bridge at the Skinners site would be more appropriate as it would have less of an impact on the local area than a bridge at Bablock Hythe. There are, however, a number of disadvantages with the Skinners site:

• The extra cost of providing a crossing for cyclists would make a foot/cycle bridge in that location at least as expensive as at Bablock Hythe and could possibly cost more - the span across the river is slightly longer.
• In order for the bridge to be accessible by bicycles, approximately 5km of rural rights of way would need to be physically upgraded. Such work can cost £40,000 per kilometre which would result in a further £200,000 to the cost of the project. No such route upgrading would be needed for a bridge at Bablock Hythe
• Approximately 4.5km of the 5km of these rights of way have only footpath status which would need to be upgraded to bridleway or cycle route status to allow cyclists to access the Skinners Bridge site. This is a complicated and lengthy legal process which has no guarantee of being successful. The relevant landowners and Rights of Way User Groups would need to be supportive of the upgrade. Such support would be difficult to achieve. No such upgrading of footpaths would be needed for the Bablock Hythe site.

Rainbow Bridge

This is a footbridge located approximately 4km upstream of Bablock Hythe. It is felt not to be a realistic alternative to a bridge at Bablock Hythe for the following reasons:

• The site would create a long detour on the route from Oxford to Witney, making the route less attractive to potential users
• The existing bridge is a footbridge which is currently unsuitable for use by cyclists, wheelchair users and equestrians. Upgrading the structure to accommodate the additional users would be very costly (it is too narrow, too steep and has substantial steps up to the bridge deck)
• Like Skinners Bridge, it would require the physical upgrade of rural rights of way – in this case approximately 4km. This could add significantly to the cost of upgrading the bridge
• Again, like Skinners bridge, a length of footpath (approx. 3km on the west side of the river) would need to be legally upgraded to allow cyclists.
  
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