Deptford Bridge about to swing into action

Spanning Deptford Creek close to its confluence with the River Thames in south London, a new cable-stayed swing bridge will provide unbroken pedestrian access to the capital’s long distance riverside Thames Path when it officially opens this month (November).

Forming part of a Galliard Homes’ residential development, the bridge’s opening system allows barges to access a ready-mix batching plant located up Deptford Creek.

“The design of the bridge had to incorporate delivering better public access to the river while not interfering with navigation on the Creek,” explains David Knight, Senior Engineer at Flint & Neill.

“The best option was a swing bridge fabricated from steel for its lightness which then minimised the size of the M&E equipment.”

Including the backspan the bridge is 52m long and predominantly consists of weathering steel plate.

Steelwork contractor S H Structures delivered the bridge deck to site in three main sections and then assembled and welded the structure together in-situ. The steel approach structure was then added and the mast attached to the main deck.

During October the cables were stressed, commissioning began and the resin bonded footbridge surfacing was installed.