Bishop's Bridge Road Parapet Panels
A series of narrative panels have been added to Bishop's Bridge in Paddington, telling the stories of Paddington's transport and industrial heritage.
The Paddington Partnership has been working to improve Bishop’s Bridge since 2021, when we commissioned 5th Studio to develop a public realm action plan. The plan was developed with the input of a wide range of local stakeholders including Westminster Council, Transport for London (buses and coaches), London Underground, Canal & River Trust, Network Rail and Marylebone Boys’ School, plus local landowners and estate teams. the final study report contained a host of ideas including additional crossings, relocating the National Express coaches, dedicated space for cycling, enhanced lighting, removing street clutter, widening pavements, more wayfinding signage and adding graphics and colour to the bridge parapets.
The final consultation report was published in March 2023 and can be read here. Following discussions of the consultation results with Westminster’s Cabinet members, the Partnership was asked to lead on lifting the appearance of Bishop’s Bridge and celebrating the area’s heritage, with the Council leading on the hard infrastructure changes and highway work through their Paddington Public Realm Strategy.
A brief was drawn up by the Partnership and Steer and Jedco were appointed in March 2023 to develop the designs. Bishop’s Bridge is made up of 183 separate concrete parapets, each with a grey stainless steel panel. The design approach saw the creation of four distinct character zones on the bridge:
- Station Splendour: celebrating the history and heritage of Paddington station
- Gateway to Adventure: featuring journeys and adventures from Paddington and the romance of travel
- The Lost Bridge: revealing Brunel’s lost bridge and the world’s first Underground journey
- Grand Union Canal: observing the canal’s industrial heritage and Paddington’s regenerated waterspace
Of
the 183 parapet panels, 69 have been replaced.
The decision was taken not to replace all panels, partly due to the cost and partly to ensure that each character zone is capable of standing alone and does not bleed into a different theme. In each section the new panels feature copy, graphics, motifs and an extra special ‘Did you know?’ feature. The motifs take reference from the Paddington area and include a star from the Paddington station roof, the railings from Brunel's lost bridge, a flower from the canal's historic 'Roses and Castles' design and train tracks.
Two wayfinding panels have also been added, at the Eastbourne Terrace end of Bishop’s Bridge. Wayfinding was a theme that was raised repeatedly during previous consultation. Whilst the See Paddington scheme has addressed wayfinding to the canalside and Paddington station’s canalside entrance, and Paddington Central is well signed, the western end of Bishop’s Bridge still leaves pedestrians confused, both when exiting the Elizabeth line at Paddington station and when moving from the bridge towards Eastbourne Terrace. These signs use the graphic style of See Paddington and add a playful element, rather than trying to replicate the style of the iconic Westminster street signs or TfL’s Legible London signs.
The Paddington Partnership funded the design development and rounds of public consultation. The costs of the fabrication and installation of the panels were met through Neighbourhood CIL via the Hyde Park and Paddington Neighbourhood Forum. The scheme was completed in September 2024.
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