A new UK design practice called Metropolitan Workshop has revealed plans for a London cable car attraction called Thames Web which would connect stretches of the river between Blackfriars and Waterloo bridges.
The scheme is at concept stage and would also provide a pedestrian link across the river with a raised platform centrepiece, which could be rented out to an entertainment group and most probably contain a bar.
Thames Web would be connected to the river banks by four, 65m (213ft) masts and a lightweight network of cables stretching 200m (656ft) across the river and 750m (2,460ft) along.
The cables would allow spherical capsules, able to hold around 15 people each, to take passengers either to the platform’s centre or across the river. The capsules were inspired by champagne bubbles and have been designed to move in pairs.
With London now confirmed as host of the 2012 Olympics, Metropolitan Workshop also believes that increased visitors to the capital could benefit from the structure as it would provide a pedestrian river crossing. From concept to completion, Thames Web would take around two years to construct and the practice has now begun working with international structural engineers Adams Kara Taylor on the designs. Details: www.metropolitanworkshop.co.uk