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Olympics roads chief joins drive to reopen Hammersmith Bridge

Lucy Young
Lucy Young

A former senior Transport for London official who prepared the capital’s road network for the 2012 Olympics was today parachuted in to speed up efforts to reopen Hammersmith Bridge.

Dana Skelley, 58, was appointed by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps as project director for the task force set up this month after the Victorian crossing was shut completely in August.

The task force, which is chaired by roads minister Baroness Vere and includes the leaders of Hammersmith and Fulham and Richmond councils as well as senior representatives from TfL, Network Rail, the GLA and the Port of London Authority, meets for the second time today.

Ms Skelley will lead engineering teams looking at how to repair the Grade II* listed bridge, which links Hammersmith with Barnes.

It was closed to traffic in April 2019 when cracks were found in its cast iron structure, with the ban widened to pedestrians and cyclists in August when the cracks widened in a heatwave.

Expertise: Dana Skelley will lead engineering teams looking at how to repair Hammersmith Bridge
Expertise: Dana Skelley will lead engineering teams looking at how to repair Hammersmith Bridge

Ms Skelley is a chartered civil engineer who works as an independent consultant. She joined TfL in 2000 as principal engineer for the City and became director of roads for London in 2008. She was responsible for a £4 billion road modernisation plan, which included preparing for the Olympics, almost all of the Thames crossings and strengthening Hammersmith flyover.

Mr Shapps said: “The delay to reopening Hammersmith Bridge is unacceptable for Londoners — which is why we’ve stepped in to take decisive action. With Dana’s expertise and our laser-like focus on this issue, we will make progress quickly.”

Baroness Vere said: “Dana brings a huge range of experience to the role… her appointment is a clear sign that the Government is serious about getting the best people in to sort the Hammersmith Bridge — an issue which has been void of leadership for too long.”

Ms Skelley said: “Bridge users deserve that full consideration be given to the options available and the right decisions are made. I look forward to working with the already established task force to enable the best outcome for this historic bridge and its many users.”

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