Background
The villages of Chiswick and Mortlake, about 6 miles (9.7 km) west of central London on the north and south banks of the River Thames, had been linked by a ferry since at least the 17th century. Both areas were sparsely populated, so there was little demand for a fixed river crossing at that point.
With the arrival of railways and the London Underground in the 19th century commuting to London became practical and affordable, and the populations of Chiswick and Mortlake grew rapidly. In 1909 the Great Chertsey Road scheme was proposed, which envisaged building a major new road from Hammersmith, then on the outskirts of London, to Chertsey, 18 miles (29 km) west of central London, bypassing the towns of Kingston and Richmond. However, the scheme was abandoned due to costs and arguments between various interested parties over the exact route the road should take.
After the First World War, the population of the West London suburbs continued to grow, thanks to improved rail transport links and the growth in ownership of automobiles. In 1925, the Ministry of Transport convened a conference between Surrey and Middlesex county councils with the aim of reaching a solution to the congestion problem, and the Great Chertsey Road scheme was revived. In 1927, the Royal Commission on Cross-River Traffic approved the scheme to relieve the by then chronic traffic congestion on the existing, mostly narrow, streets in the area, and on the narrow bridges at Richmond Bridge, Kew and Hammersmith. The Ministry of Transport agreed to pay heavy subsidies towards the cost.
A new arterial road, now the A316 road, was given Royal Assent on 3 August 1928, and construction began in 1930. The construction of the road required two new bridges to be built, at Twickenham and Chiswick. The proposal was authorised in 1928 and construction began in the same year. The bridge, along with the newly built Twickenham Bridge and the rebuilt Hampton Court Bridge, was opened by Edward, Prince of Wales on 3 July 1933, and the ferry service was permanently closed.
Read more about this topic: Chiswick Bridge
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