A first for the UK, an innovative and colourful new streetscape has been installed by Better Bankside, the not-for-profit Business Improvement District (BID). The vibrant boardwalk, on Lavington Street, Bankside, London SE1, expands the narrow pedestrian walkway space and injects playfulness into the urban realm.
The temporary and trial project implements an experimental one-way traffic operation and uses the road space freed up to extend pavements using a specially-commissioned modular ‘boardwalk’ structure. The project is experimental and could be on site for up to six months, during which period Better Bankside will analyse the impact on how the street is used by walkers and drivers. This is another groundbreaking pilot project from Better Bankside. If successful, the project will be rolled out in other areas of London.
The Bankside Boardwalk, designed by SE1-based transport consultancy Steer Davies Gleave was funded by a £73,260 grant from TfL and £15,000 donation from a local landowner. This is just one example of a Better Bankside initiative which aims to make the area a more inspiring and environmentally-friendly place to live, work and visit.
Previous projects have included the installation of Colourful Crossings on Southwark Street. The crossings feature unique designs, by artists including Thierry Noir and Camille Walala, that brighten up the days of those who use it. A survey around the first crossing installed in 2015 revealed that almost 70% people felt happier as a result of the creative project, and 85% wanted to see more creative projects along Southwark Street. Since Better Bankside’s original Colourful Crossing installation, the approach has been taken up in other parts of London including Brixton, Croydon and more recently in the City of London and are proposed as part of the draft proposals to pedestrianise Oxford Street. Better Bankside plans to deliver four more Colourful Crossings in 2018 along Borough High Street, Tooley Street and St Thomas Street in collaboration with Team London Bridge after being awarded a £200,000 grant from the Greater London Authority to implement innovative air quality initiatives in the delivery of a ‘Low Emissions Neighbourhood’.
Further initiatives have included the Clean Air Mini Neighbourhood project, in support of the Mayor’s Healthy Streets strategy. Run in association with Kings College London, Southwark Council and Cross River Partnership, this included a Metal Box Garden of specially commissioned planted skips and will see the transformation of the historic Keppel Row alleyway into a verdant pedestrian thoroughfare linking Southwark Bridge Road and Great Guildford Street. The Clean Air Mini Neighbourhood is working with over 100 businesses in the area of Bankside between Southwark Street and the rail viaduct, and aims to improve the look and feel of some of the quieter routes which crisscross the area to support greater footfall.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “London’s toxic air is a public health crisis and I’m delighted to be working with businesses across the capital to help rid the city of unnecessary pockets of pollution. Encouraging people away from the most damaging main streets through any means is something I support and it will be interesting to see the results of the various methods in play.”