It's been six years since a used by thousands of Londoners every day was shut off from motorist traffic - with repair costs soaring ever since.

The Hammersmith Bridge, an impressive Victorian structure crossing the River Thames in West , was closed in April 2019 after engineers found cracks in its 138-year-old design.

While commuters have been left scrambling to find alternative transport routes - with journey times extended by up to an hour for those travelling by bus from Barnes to Hammersmith Station - meaningful progress has yet to be made on fixing the crucial piece of city .

An estimated 22,000 drivers used the route every day before its closure - but the costs of repairing the bridge have risen to £250 million, an eye-watering rise on the £40 million estimate given back in 2019.

Transport for London said work had been taken to strengthen the bridge's pedestals, but admitted that a longer-term plan for its future was still in the development stages.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said TfL would only pay for the work if it was part of a long-term Government funding agreement.

Such a deal in 2021 suggested that the costs be split between the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, the Department for Transport and TfL.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said she would work with Mr Khan to reopen the bridge ahead of last year's general election, but did not provide details on how the project would be funded.

It comes after Fleur Anderson, Labour MP for Putney, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the bridge may not reopen until the mid-2030s.

While vehicles are still unable to cross, renovated pedestrian, cyclist and scooter access is expected to be unveiled in the spring.

But the slow progress has disheartened some, with Lord Harries of Pentregarth suggesting that "thousands of commuters have been very badly inconvenienced for more than five years" during a debate in December.

"During that time, the Notre Dame was gutted by fire and rebuilt," he added.

Sarah Olney, the Labour MP for Putney, told The Telegraph that the prospect of another 10 years without the bridge functioning for motorists was an "incredibly depressing" prospect.

"We need central government funding to get this fixed, because the cost of fixing it is considerably beyond what either TfL or Hammersmith and Fulham would be able to afford," she said.

"It was an unsatisfactory situation in the first place, giving rise now to this enormous financial liability, and [central government], the only people who can actually pay it, have so far refused to."

A spokesman for the Department for Transport said: "We have inherited a challenging situation with Hammersmith Bridge, where decisions about its future have been ducked for many years. We recognise the frustration its continued closure is causing motorists.

"We continue to work closely with the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham and Transport for London on the bridge's restoration."