River Thames Footbridge

When residential developer Berkeley Homes took on the challenge of regenerating a significant post-industrial site alongside the River Thames in Taplow, Buckinghamshire, it was obvious their plans had to embrace the river.

This elegant footbridge was designed to improve the Thames Path, providing a new traffic-free recreational route for residents and public alike, and bringing the two riverside communities together. As part of the new Taplow Riverside public realm, newly-created gardens lead to the bridge, giving access to the attractive Victorian pleasure gardens and a small cafe on Ray Mill Island.

It is a quintessentially English location, enhanced by the picturesque reflections on the steelwork, which demanded an elegant design response. The concept was inspired by the famous arches of Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s nearby Maidenhead Railway Bridge, whose “widest and flattest brick arches in the world” are echoed in the slender new steel box structure.