Member Article

Controversial Garden Bridge in doubt after Khan halts construction

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has effectively halted work on the controversial Garden Bridge scheme over fears that more public money will have to be lavished on the project.

Work on strengthening Temple tube station which would support the north end of the proposed bridge was due to be greenlit at a policy committee on Friday.

However, Khan has now ordered a halt on the pivotal enabling work so that the £3m funding needed can be properly scrutinised after the Mayor made assurances that no more public money would be spent on the £175m bridge.

A spokesperson for the Mayor told Architect’s Journal: “The previous mayor first approved plans for enabling work to prepare Temple Tube station for the arrival of the Garden Bridge two years ago in the summer of 2014, but final authorisation was only provided in March this year, two months before the mayoral election.

“This enabling work has since been suspended, and that will be reported to the Finance and Policy Committee today.

“Sadiq Khan has been clear that no new public funds should be committed to the Garden Bridge, and he has pledged to make the project more open and transparent – standards that were not always met under the previous administration.”

The bridge, which was due to begin construction this summer ahead of a 2018 opening, has been mired in controversy after concerns about the transparency of the supposedly ‘open’ design competition which saw designers Thomas Heatherwick awarded the work by former Mayor Boris Johnson as well as concerns about the amount of private, fundraising days originally planned once the bridge opens.

Khan has previously dubbed the Garden Bridge one of Johnson’s ‘white elephants’, but pledged to forge ahead with the project in May.