Boris and the "habitable" bridge

As bonkers ideas go, this seems pretty special.

I looked up the design proposed by Antonie Grumbach and it's laughable - like an infant megalomaniac's school project.
http://www.antoinegrumbach.com/pdf/expo/1996_LivingBridges_RoyalAcademyArts.pdf

I think Boris should stick to the things he was elected to sort out - public transport, green issues, crime, creating opportunities for young people, etc. - rather than grandstanding (and yes, inaccurately recalling his "intervention" over the Three Sisters).

It's a great idea, imho. Even better, line it with kubus houses ( http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bestand:Kubuswoningen_Speelhuisplein_Helmond.jpg )

I genuinely love the idea of living on a bridge.

It's totally old skool. This is the kind of idea that London needs. Something with a bit of scale and ambition, not the usual grey utilitarian cobblers.

Not sure I like the original proposal, but in terms of the concept... why not? I like the idea of stopping midway across the Thames to take in the view and a latte.

Tell us more about the kubus houses?

Housing is an important priority, it's just as important as crime, etc. This is a bit mad, but I still like it as an idea, but a more urgent scheme would be a river bus service that was reliable and affordable, to reduce congestion.

Great concept. Professional sneerers like Jonathan Glancey should ......

I completely dislike that idea!

Back in the day as London bridge was apparently inhabited London was much smaller a place and less cramped than it is now.

Crossing any of the bridges across the Thames still feels quite special to me. Where else in London do you get those long uninterrupted viewing corridors in the middle of the city? You can see other bridges, the skyline and feel the wind howling down the Thames....

Now imagine an apartment block spanning across the river:
One humongous wall blocking all vistas.
And if you were to cross that bridge all you get to see is shopfronts of the usual high street chains you find in London, New York, Tokyo etc....you may not even be aware you're crossing the river as it feels like any other highstreet.

The views we get now however are completely unique!

Many years ago a friend of mine said:
The greatest thing about living in south London is you get to cross the bridges at all the times....today I couldn't agree more.

He was asked for his vision and he gave it. It's not a firm idea that he's spending lots of money on research for.

As ideas go it's fun, providing it's somewhere where a crossing is needed, such as where the (polluting) Thames Crossing bridge was going to be built.

On that note, river boats are a very inefficient (polluting) form of public transport. Some use 100 litres of diesel an hour and that's not even the largest ones - several times more than a large bus uses. So even with diesel costing about 1/3 what we pay at the pumps it costs a fortune to run them. I'm not sure that is a great vision of improving London, though no doubt it's fun and tourists and a handful of Londoners have enjoyed improved services in recent years.

I'm sure we could have greener boats, it's probably that there's been no impetus to develop them. You can get lots of people on a boat, and it takes congestion off the roads. Of course I'm happy to stand corected, but it doesn't make logical sense that sending people directly by the river is less green than using a less direct route, often by car...and there's nothing wrong with making public transport fun, it's so often not!!!

I think it's super..