Barges at Hammersmith Bridge
3rd October 2023
Here is an overview of when the major movements of barges at Hammersmith Bridge will take place this week so that you can plan your outings accordingly.
Monday 2nd & Tuesday 3rd Oct
The drilling rig is on the downstream Northern arch. A guard boat is moored upstream on the edge of the fairway, roughly opposite the AK raft. The large barge that was moored on the edge of the fairway has been moved down to below Putney for now - however it will return. Arch 3 on the southern Barnes side is open so the ISZ is not affected.
Wednesday 4th to Sunday 8th October (inclusive)
Following the early morning high tide (c. 06:16) the rig will will be moved off of its current position and taken down to below Putney Bridge by the large support barge. In the mid afternoon as soon as the tide at Putney rises high enough the rig will be returned back up river and go under Hammersmith Bridge. Then on the evening high tide (c.18:31) the rig will be put in its new position off the Northern buttress UPSTREAM of the Bridge for the rest of the week. The large support barge will be moored upstream at Dove pier. A guard boat will be stationed upstream above the rig/northern buttress on the edge of the fairway near AK. Arch 3 will be open on the south side so the ISZ is not affected.
During each set of movements there will be a number of other vessels around supporting the moves.
Thank you
Thank you for various emails and photos I have received on issues arising. Mooring buoys will be removed when a boat leaves its station, the exception being when the small guard boats leave station for a very short while just to do a crew change over. Navigational lighting of the rigs and barges have all been improved. The locations of the barges and safety boat have been tweaked to minimise disruption. Thank you to the club who came forward promptly over their capsize incident on Saturday.
I trust this information although detailed is useful to you and helps us all to manage the increased risks during these works.
Kind regards,Alice Jenkinson
Safety Adviser | Thames Regional Rowing Council
