London’s Waterloo Bridge faces closure by 2030 unless £6m repairs are funded

The findings were detailed in a Westminster City Council funding-bid document obtained by Bloomberg through a Freedom of Information request.

Without repairs by the end of the 2029-30 financial year, measures could include weight limits "or ultimately full closure of Waterloo Bridge," the council said.

Westminster is now bidding for £6million to tackle the deterioration of the bridge - which carries more than 25,000 vehicles each day.

A total of 15 bus routes also travel across Waterloo Bridge, meaning the council now faces a race against time to avert traffic chaos in the heart of the capital.

But London’s bridge troubles extend well beyond Waterloo.

Hammersmith Bridge, a cast-iron structure dating back to 1887, was closed to motor traffic in 2019 after a heatwave exposed cracks in its structure.

Cars were banned from Albert Bridge, another Victorian Thames crossing, by Kensington and Chelsea Council in February.

TfL tightened weight restrictions on Vauxhall Bridge over the summer and cautioned that further limits could follow within four years.

"We are often in London dealing with infrastructure that was built for a city 150, 200 years ago," David Knight, a structural engineer and adviser to the Institution of Civil Engineers, told Bloomberg.

Engineers are usually on the "back foot when it comes to maintenance budgets," Mr Knight said.

TfL, borough councils and the City Bridge Foundation charity all share responsibility for the river crossings, leaving councils struggling to cover repair costs they say are unaffordable.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council has already spent £42million on its bridge since 2019, roughly a fifth of its annual budget.

The council has bid for £120million from central Government to stabilise the structure.

Plans to fully reopen Hammersmith Bridge to cars have been shelved, with the council estimating the cost could rocket as high as £300million.

"The current preferred approach is a phased repair programme focused on keeping the bridge safely open for pedestrians, cyclists and river traffic as the next phase of repair," according to the council.

If the bridge closes entirely, pedestrians would face an hour-long detour between Barnes and Hammersmith, and the annual Oxford-Cambridge boat race could be cancelled.

Former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer launched a £1billion Structures Fund in April to help councils fix ageing assets nationwide.

But that number is merely a "drop in the ocean," Caroline Russell, the chairwoman of the London Assembly’s Transport Committee said.

Fleur Anderson, the Labour MP for Putney, has called for a single body to manage London’s bridges.

"London is here because of its position as a crossing point for the Thames but its bridges are being neglected because governance is divided," she said.

Wandsworth Council Leader Robert Morritt argued in July that Hammersmith Bridge should be handed to Lord Khan, saying the issue "needs clear mayoral leadership, rather than years more drift between borough and national responsibilities."