Extra demand for moorings by Olympic visitors anticipated

Chiswick Pier Trust plans to extend pontoon to welcome visitors from around the world to the Olympic Games.

The Chiswick Pier Trust (CPT) today submitted a planning application to extend its pontoons downstream to meet the demand for moorings anticipated for the London
Olympic Games.

This welcome addition to the Pier is in response to a huge demand identified by the Port of London Authority (PLA), and already reflected in a number of enquiries from private boat owners from overseas directly to Chiswick Pier.

These moorings would be retained after the games as part of the Olympic Legacy for Hounslow as an additional facility for boat owners and the local community in line with the Trust's charitable aims and the Thames Strategy, Kew to Chelsea* which Hounslow Council has adopted.

Enhanced access, mooring and storage for the growing number of canoeists with the
Chiswick Canoe Club will be possible, and it will give the young people involved with
the Sea Cadets improved facilities. It will also allow the Royal National Lifeboat
Institution (RNLI) to launch it's lifeboats even faster and will provide dedicated
teaching areas for the thousands of school children who visit the Pier each year as
part of the Thames Explorer Trust’s educational programmes.


the towpath on Barnes bank with a photomontage of craft at an extended pontoon

Critically, it provides a dedicated transfer point for passengers using Thames River
buses downriver to Greenwich, Canary Wharf, Central London, Battersea, and
Putney and upriver to Kew, Richmond, Kingston and Hampton Court. The CPT is
encouraging river bus operators to introduce this as a regular service, and hope the
planning application will allow the creation of a specific area for passenger transfer.

The cost of the proposed new pontoon will be fully funded by the Chiswick Pier
Trust. Architects David Clarke Associates have prepared the planning application,
and the extension would match the existing pontoons constructed by Walcon Marine.
These will be subject to consultation and ultimately obtaining consents from the
London Borough of Hounslow and the PLA.

Charles Lawrence, Chair of the CPT says, “The Chiswick Pier Trust works to engage
people with the River Thames and this new pontoon will make our stretch of the
Thames more accessible for local residents and visitors, not only for the Olympics,
but for generations thereafter. We have received many calls from private boat
owners overseas wanting to moor at the Pier while they are here for the Games. By
being able to give them improved accommodation, we will encourage visitors to
Chiswick and boost trade for local businesses. And our improved facilities will be a
lasting legacy for the residents of Hounslow and river enthusiasts.”

The CPT invite local residents to come to the Pier House and meet members of the
Trust to hear about their work and see their plans for the future on Tuesday June
28th from 6-8pm. Refreshments will be served. Drawings of the proposed pontoon
are on their notice board and the London Borough of Hounslow will post them on
their website.



June 6, 2011