Heatherwick Studio designs garden bridge across the Thames

Thomas Heatherwick, Joanna Lumley and Arup have won a competition to design a garden bridge across the Thames.

The footbridge, which has no funding, would span the river at Temple, linking the West End directly with the South Bank between Waterloo and Blackfriars bridges.

Planted with native British and London species at varying scales and density, the structure would broaden and narrow along its length, creating moments of intimacy and surprise.

Heatherwick Studio and Arup are working up the design concept and should be ready to publish detailed plans in mid-July.

Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, wants more river crossings and is keen to “help progress in London an iconic scheme similar to the New York High Line”.

But this scheme is both unbuilt and entirely dependent on private funds. A sponsorship deal could be pursued similar to the Emirates cable car crossing which was designed by Wilkinson Eyre.

Thomas Heatherwick said he was excited by the prospect of creating a unique kind of green space in one of the greenest cities in the world.

“The idea is simple: to connect north and south London with a garden,” he said.

Joanna Lumley, who has been promoting the idea for some time, said: “This garden will be sensational in every way: a place with no noise or traffic where the only sounds will be birdsong and bees buzzing and the wind in the trees, and below the steady rush of water.

“It will be the slowest way to cross the river, as people will dawdle and lean on parapets and stare at the great cityscapes all around; but it will also be a safe and swift way for the weary commuter to make his way back over the Thames.

“There will be grasses, trees, wild flowers, and plants, unique to London’s natural riverside habitat. And there will be blossom in the spring and even a Christmas tree in mid-winter.  I believe it will bring to Londoners and visitors alike peace and beauty and magic.”

The Embankment and Strand area is currently the subject of a proposed rebranding project which would see it promoted as “Northbank” by a BID (business improvement district).

A spokeswoman for the mayor said visitor numbers to the Temple lagged far behind the revived Southbank and the bridge would help address that, providing a new walking route to Covent Garden and Soho.

“A proposal is currently being progressed following a competitive tender process,” she said.