Jubilee footbridge planned in honour of pageant launch

Image caption Architect Chris Medland said the bridge will improve Battersea residents' access to the new Imperial Wharf station

A Jubilee footbridge is planned for the River Thames between Fulham and Battersea in south-west London.

Architect Chris Medland said it was fitting to name it after the Queen's 60th year on the throne as it is where she boarded her launch for the start of the Diamond Jubilee river pageant.

The Golden Jubilee Bridges were the last footbridges built in the city.

The £22m bridge will take cyclists and pedestrians between Chelsea Harbour and Lombard Road, Battersea.

It will sit beside the listed railway bridge which dates back to the 1850s.

Image caption The Queen boarded her launch at Chelsea Harbour for the start of her Diamond Jubilee river pageant in June

Mr Medland, who lives on the south side of the Thames in Battersea, said: "The area has changed completely in the last 10 years.

"The riverfront from Battersea Park feels Parisian and is becoming much more popular with pedestrians and cyclists."

If planning permission is granted by both Hammersmith and Fulham Council and Wandsworth Council, Mr Medland said he hopes the arched bridge could be completed by spring 2014.

The Golden Jubilee Bridges either side of the Hungerford Bridge, span the Thames between Charing Cross and the Southbank and were opened in 2002.

Mr Medland added that he hoped a sponsor would buy the naming rights for the bridge to help fund the construction of the crossing.