A long-hoped-for footbridge across the River Lea could be built in 2027 – after nearly £10million was put up by two councils to fund it.
The Mayer Parry Bridge would connect the Leaway footpath in Canning Town with Leven Road in Poplar, with plans to build it having been in the works since at least 2021.
The bridge would span the borough boundary between Tower Hamlets and Newham and is a joint project between the two councils.
Tower Hamlets Council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) this week it had now found £4.8million to pay towards building the bridge. Newham Council leaders voted to commit the same amount last week.
Newham mayor Rokhsana Fiaz said the bridge would be “a vital piece of infrastructure that will connect a really significant part of Tower Hamlets with Newham to create opportunities of growth and access to jobs”.
Council leaders in Newham voted to approve the funding at a cabinet committee meeting last Thursday (23rd).
Papers presented to the cabinet said there is currently no way to cross the River Lea between the A13 at Canning Town and Twelvetrees Crescent at Bromley-by-Bow – a distance of over a mile.
The papers said: “Along with busy main roads such as the nearby A12and A13, the river forms a physical barrier for the local community.
“This same area is poised for significant residential and commercial growth, and without connections along and across the river, many future pedestrian and cycle journeys will be forced to share space on busy roads with vehicular traffic.”
Newham and Tower Hamlets councils have been considering building three bridges across this section of the river since at least 2021, when they both agreed to share costs and carry out enabling work.
Pages on both councils’ websites indicate they hoped all three bridges would be built and in use by this year, but a feasibility study presented to Newham Council’s cabinet last week suggests it can only commit to funding one of them – Mayer Parry Bridge.
It said funding the other two bridges would require “substantial” borrowing or the use of money that could pay for “other critical infrastructure across the borough”.
A presentation to Tower Hamlets Council’s transformation advisory board in September 2024 said that the authority would seek an “innovative funding” approach towards Mayer Parry Bridge.
Both councils have now agreed to pay £4.8m each using money secured from developers of other projects as part of planning agreements. Another £2.4m will come as a grant from the Greater London Authority.
A Tower Hamlets spokesperson told the LDRS this week its contribution would be “finalised” by its cabinet in January 2026.
Plans approved by Newham’s cabinet last week said £1m of its portion would come from the developers of a planned new data centre in Bidder Street.
They say developers would pay this in two instalments of £500,000 once construction work on the data centre reaches two “trigger points” in 2027.
Both councils expect to enter into construction contracts to build the bridge at this time.
Papers presented to Newham’s cabinet say there is a “small risk” that construction work on the data centre doesn’t reach the two trigger points in 2027.
However, they say that “safeguards” mean that the council would be able to suspend the project or seek alternative funding if this happens.
The council will also need to secure an agreement with a private landowner in Canning Town to build and access the bridge. But officers told the cabinet that talks with the owner have been “quite positive”.
Papers also said cost, funding and land ownership meant the two other bridges – Lochnagar and Poplar Reach – were less feasible. That’s despite planning permission for Lochnagar Bridge being granted in May 2024.
The papers said the two bridges “may become feasible in the longer term if conditions change and further funding becomes available”.
