Carnwath Road Riverside

Tideway's construction work at Carnwath Road Riverside is now substantially complete.

Located next to Wandsworth Bridge in Fulham, Carnwath Road Riverside was one of the three 'main drive sites' from which our tunnel boring machines began building the main tunnel. The Frogmore Connection Tunnel also joins the 36m-deep drop shaft and main tunnel at this site.

The site included Whiffin Wharf, Hurlingham Wharf, Carnwath Road Industrial Estate and an area of the River Thames foreshore and works have now substantially completed, with the former site offices currently being removed from site over the coming weeks.

The above-ground legacy at this site is a new area of community riverside space that reconnects this area with the River Thames.

Main Tunnel

TBM Breakthrough

Aerial view

Brand New

Riverside Space

This ‘pocket park’ provides a new route to the river, permanent seating and a community space. The Thames Path has been extended to create a 6m-wide walkway across the entire riverside section of the site and the 15m-high ventilation column has been set back to enable the continuation of the walkway along the frontage of Hurlingham Wharf in the future.

The design of the space was based on a ‘flowing bands’ motif, which is a visual reference to the currents in the river bend and nearby reeds. These bands can be seen in the ventilation column, operational kiosk building and the wall to Hurlingham Wharf.

The site has a slip-resistant surface and the seating on the Thames Path has backs and arm rests for those with additional needs.

The foreshore area is within a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation and includes: 16 semi-mature trees; shrubs, ornamental grasses and perennial planting; a 150m2 brown/biodiverse roof on the ventilation building; and a nesting feature for Black Redstarts.

The space integrates a series of artworks that respond to the area’s heritage of the river, commerce and nature – see panel below for details.

Sarah Staton

Standing Heron and Heron in Flight

Sarah researched the site’s history, exploring Tideway’s Heritage Interpretation Strategy (HIS), which for the West section of the tunnel is themed around ‘Recreation to Industry: Society in Transition’. The site-specific history of Carwath Riverside identifies a trajectory from the low-lying riverside common land becoming private land, giving over to industry, and returning again to a new public space.

Sarah conceived the two-part artwork Standing Heron and Heron in Flight in celebration of the beautiful herons that can be seen flying upstream or wandering here on the foreshore. The artist was delighted to discover that the heron features as a recurring motif on 19th-century de Morgan ceramics. One bird is placed at the river end of the site, and the other, is directly visible when approaching the site from Carnwath Road.

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