Ridgeway (London)

Footpath in London, England

For the ancient track in southern England, see The Ridgeway. For the pathway in east London that covers the Northern Outfall Sewer, see Greenway, London.

Sign marking the Ridgeway where it meets the Thames Path

The Ridgeway is a 3.5-mile (5.6 km)[1][2][3] "cycling permitted pedestrian priority" footpath owned by Thames Water in southeast London. It runs between Plumstead and Crossness on an embankment that covers the Joseph Bazalgette Southern Outfall Sewer.

## Route

[edit]

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Ridgeway footpath, London

Legend

|  |  |

|  | Plumstead

|
|
|
|

|  |

|  | Pettman Cresent  A206
|  |

|  | Elizabeth line depot[4][5][6]
|  |

|  | HM Prison Belmarsh
|  |

|  | White Hart Avenue
|  |

|  | Nathan Way/Sewell Road (East)
|  |

|  | Sewell Road (West)
|  |

|  | Thamesmead
|  |

|  | Harrow Manor Way  A2041
|  |

|  |  | Greenwich

Bexley
border
|  |

|  | Green Chain walk[7]
|  |

|  | The Link Thamesmead[8]
|  |

|  | Southmere lake
|  |

|  | Lakeside Centre[9][10]
|  |

|  | Southmere Boat Club[11][12]
|  |

|  | Bazalgette Way
|  |

|  | Eastern Way  A2016
|  |

|  | Crossway Park
|  |

|  | Sporting Club Thamesmead F.C.
|  |

|  | Crossness Pumping Station
|  |

|  | Thames Path[13]
|  |  |  |  |  |

The Ridgeway runs ENE/WSW:[14] the western two thirds between Plumstead railway station and The Link Thamesmead, home of the London College of Performing Arts,[15][16][17] is in the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

The remainder of the Ridgeway towards the Thames Path and Crossness Pumping Station is in the London Borough of Bexley.

A similar path called the Greenway covers the Northern Outfall Sewer.

## History

[edit]

The sewers were installed after an outbreak of cholera in 1853 and the "Great Stink" of 1858.[18][19]

## Development

[edit]

The pathway at the Greenwich end of the Ridgeway was refurbished in 2010[20][21] and the pathway at the Bexley end of the Ridgeway was refurbished in 2017.[22][23][24]

The Ridgeway is incorporated in to the Thamesmead 5K and family 1 mile runs organised by the Thamesmead running club and Peabody Trust.[25][26]

The Ridgeway and several surrounding areas have been recognised by the Mayor of London and the London boroughs as a site of importance for nature conservation (SINC) since 2016.[27][28][29]

In 2018, the Plumstead entrance to the Ridgeway was refurbished, with public art work installed by local artist Sam Skinner and Ninth Seal.[30][31] Further changes to the Plumstead entrance and surrounding public realm are planned in 2024 as a result of issues highlighted in the Plumstead Area Framework conducted by Greenwich council in 2016.[32][33][34][35]

A petition was created by local users of the Ridgeway for litter bins to be installed along its length. The petition was rejected by Greenwich council in January 2018.[36][37][38]

In 2018, the American artist Duke Riley installed a temporary art installations at the end of the Ridgeway, on land previously used as the driving range for the Thamesview Golf centre. The event organised as part of the London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT) 2018 was called 'Fly By Night' and featured 1,500 LED-lit, trained pigeons flying above the River Thames.[39][40][41]

In 2023, the Ridgeway featured in the 'Thamesmead Light Festival: Light The Way' which incorporated a number of light sculptures on a walking trail between the Lakeside Arts Centre, Crossway Park and Sporting Club Thamesmead.[42][43] That year, the Ridgeway was also included as one of the 22 sites selected by the Mayor of London for the second round of his Rewild London Fund.[44] The funding aimed to create a 'Thamesmead Pollinator Corridor' and was led by the North West Kent Countryside Partnership in collaboration with the BumbleBee Conservation Trust, Bow Arts, University of East London and the Ridgeway Users community group.[45][46][47][48] Subsequently, the rare brown banded carder bee has been recorded on sites that had been planted as part of the pollinator corridor project.[49][50] As part of the Thamesmead Pollinator Corridor project, the artist, Ellen Strachan was commissioned to create two interpretation boards on the Ridgeway.[51][52][53] These boards were unveiled by the Mayor of Bexley on 8 April 2024.[54][55]

In 2023, the Belgium artist and film-maker, Elise Guillaume held a 'Listening to the Bees' workshop on the Ridgeway organised as part of the Three Rivers Bexley Alliance with the BumbleBee Conservation Trust and the Ridgeway Users community group.[56][57][58][59][60]

In 2025, Gallery No. 32 will host a winter sculpture park at the end of the Ridgeway, on the former Thamesview golf centre.[61][62]

Between 2024 - 2029 the Ridgeway Biodiversity Project will be undertaken. It is funded through a biodiversity offsetting agreement between Thames Water, the landowner and Cory Riverside Energy. It will involve 'removing denser areas of scrub and non-native species, while restoring and extending the areas of more open habitats such as grassland, wildflowers and bare ground' and will take place in two phases over five years.[63][64]

There is a Facebook group,[65] Instagram page,[66] and Twitter page [67] for Ridgeway Users.

## Future proposals

[edit]

There is an option to extend the Royal Arsenal Narrow Gauge (RANG) steam railway [68][69][70] from Crossness car park to Plumstead railway station via the Ridgeway.[71][72]

At the western end of the Ridgeway, the housing association Peabody Trust in association with Berkeley Group have applied to build 1,750 homes adjacent to Plumstead bus garage.[73][74] As part of the planning process for this development, extensive archaeological excavations were carried out along Pettman Cresent adjacent to the Plumstead end of the Ridgeway. [75] Improvements to existing public spaces around the development will include improvements to pathways that pass the Ridgeway.[76][77][78] Proposals have been put forward by the Pharaoh Project to create a 'biodome' within the underpass at Pettman Crescent adjacent to the Plumstead entrance of the Ridgeway.[79][80] Planning applications have been submitted for the construction of film studios opposite the entrance to the Ridgeway and Kellner Road,[81] and within the disused Plumstead power station on White Hart Road to the South of the Ridgeway.[82] [83]Devon and Cornwall Railways Limited have submitted plans to reinstate the Plumstead Goods Yard next to the Ridgeway as a fully active freight site to receive aggregate and other rail imported material to serve London. [84][85][86]

Peabody Trust have been working to open up access to the Ridgeway from the Thames Path and have partnered with Sustrans to work on proposals to develop a route from Southmere Lake via the Ridgeway through the former Thamesview Golf Centre to the River Thames.[87][88]

### TfL rail proposals

[edit]

In a presentation by TfL to the Greenwich Council, they proposed an extension of the Gospel Oak to Barking London Overground train service from the new Barking Riverside station to Thamesmead Central and via Plumstead to Woolwich Arsenal that would take a route along the eastern section of the Ridgeway or Belvedere station using the eastern section of the Ridgeway. However, other Overground and DLR options would not be using the Ridgeway.[89]

## Media

[edit]

The Ridgeway was the subject of a radio show on Resonance FM in 2011.[90] It also features in an app produced by London Borough of Bexley to promote heritage walking trails. To celebrate the launch of the Elizabeth line on 24 May 2022, the YouTuber Runderground Matt featured the Ridgeway in his run across the core section of the line from Abbey Wood to Paddington.[91] The YouTube channel called 'Cripple Cruise' has featured the Ridgeway in several of their POV style videos taken from the perspective of a mobility scooter user.[92] The Ridgeway is featured in the book, Everything from the Egg, by the British artist Stephen Turner and published by The Artist Agency in 2023.[93][94][95] The book describes the journey of his art installation, the Exbury Egg, including its residency at the Lakeside Centre in Thamesmead in 2019, next to the Ridgeway.[96][97]

## Gallery

[edit]

* Sign outside Ridgeway Plumstead lower entrance[98][99]

* Ridgeway upper level looking towards Plumstead and Nathan Road exit. Close to the site of the Manor Ground arena

* Ridgeway entrance on the Thames Path

* Example of arch signs along the route

* Ridgeway interpretation board (on the left) at Cory Bridge by Abbey Wood based artist, Ellen Strachan[100][101][102]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "London's Ridgeway: Plumstead to Abbey Wood". Ifootpath.com. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
2. ^ "Relation: The Ridgeway (174515)". 20 December 2022.
3. ^ "Ridgeway".
4. ^ "Crossrail starts race for 30m sidings depot at Plumstead". Construction Enquirer News. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
5. ^ https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/781/made
6. ^ https://www.railengineer.co.uk/tso-completes-plumstead-maintenance-depot/
7. ^ "Thamesmead to Lesnes Abbey - Transport for London". Retrieved 2 June 2020.
8. ^ https://www.thamesmeadnow.org.uk/in-your-community/the-link/our-partners/london-college-of-performing-arts/
9. ^ https://www.architecture00.net/00projects/lakeside-centre
10. ^ https://bowarts.org/lakeside-centre-ace-grant/
11. ^ https://www.thamesmeadnow.org.uk/news/smooth-sailing-for-new-boat-club-on-southmere-lake/
12. ^ https://www.architecture00.net/00projects/southmereboatclub
13. ^ "The Thamesmead Grump: 08/19/16". Retrieved 31 May 2020.
14. ^ "Diamond Geezer". Diamondgeezer.blogspot.co.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
15. ^ "London College of Performing Arts : Thamesmead".
16. ^ https://www.londoncollegeofperformingarts.com/ [bare URL]
17. ^ https://theatrestreet.squarespace.com/ [bare URL]
18. ^ "SIR JOSEPH BAZALGETTE and LONDON'S INTERCEPTING SEWER SYSTEM" (PDF). Retrieved 28 May 2020.
19. ^ "View: London (Edition of 1894-96) XCV (Borough Of Woolwich) - Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, 1841-1952". Retrieved 30 May 2020.
20. ^ "The Ridgeway". Issuu.com. 6 February 2013. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
21. ^ "Royal Borough of Greenwich - Consultations". Consultations.royalgreenwich.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
22. ^ King, Emily. "12 weeks of improvement works to Ridgeway path begin next week". Bexleytimes.co.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
23. ^ "Improvements to deliver lasting benefit to Ridgeway Path". Corporate.thameswater.co.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
24. ^ "The Thamesmead Grump". Thethamesmeadgrump.blogspot.co.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
25. ^ "Thamesmead 5K and Family 1 Mile : Thamesmead". Retrieved 30 May 2020.
26. ^ "Thamesmead 5km Race - Thamesmead 5km". 14 September 2019. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
27. ^ "Biodiversity | London City Hall".
28. ^ "GiGL SINCs Open Data – London Datastore".
29. ^ "Planning Data Map".
30. ^ "More Plumstead murals appear - From The Murky Depths". 3 November 2018.
31. ^ "Royal Borough of Greenwich". www.facebook.com.
32. ^ "Changes planned around Plumstead station and underpass: New consultation begins". 22 November 2023.
33. ^ https://committees.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/CalendarofMeetings/tabid/70/ctl/ViewMeetingPublic/mid/397/Meeting/1349/Committee/72/Default.aspx [bare URL]
34. ^ https://loveplumstead.commonplace.is/ [bare URL]
35. ^ "Plumstead's dingy underpass could get pop-up markets in council revamp". 23 November 2023.
36. ^ Morrow, Matt (18 October 2017). "Pleased to present petition on behalf of @RidgewayUsers at full Council in #Greenwich calling for instillation [sic] of litter bins on the Ridgeway #Plumstead".
37. ^ Users, Ridgeway (17 November 2017). "@Ridgewayusers hand in a petition to @tpearce003. Thanks go to all who signed. @LBofBexley @thameswaterpic.twitter.com/tH2jCkNYYy".
38. ^ "Agenda for Council on Wednesday, 31st January, 2018, 7.00 pm". committees.royalgreenwich.gov.uk. 31 January 2018.
39. ^ "8 shows you should see at this year's LIFT Festival". 22 June 2018.
40. ^ "1,500 glowing pigeons, a new Punchdrunk show, and a party in the Tower of London moat feature in the 2018 LIFT Festival". 28 February 2018.
41. ^ https://www.facebook.com/LIFTfestival/photos/a.10156164322959555/10156164345699555/ [bare URL]
42. ^ https://www.thamesmeadnow.org.uk/whats-on/light-the-way-thamesmead-light-festival/ [bare URL]
43. ^ "Thamesmead light festival returns with showstopping water screen : Thamesmead".
44. ^ "Mayor brings back beavers in Ealing, bees in Bexley and bats in Barnes as he sets out plans to rewild London | London City Hall".
45. ^ "The Rewild London Fund | London Wildlife Trust".
46. ^ "Rewild London Fund 2022 | London City Hall".
47. ^ "Thamesmead Pollinator Corridor - Bumblebee Conservation Trust".
48. ^ "Thamesmead Pollinator Corridor Project".
49. ^ https://x.com/nikkigammans/status/1821861802986062270 [bare URL]
50. ^ "Instagram".
51. ^ https://www.facebook.com/groups/RidgewayUsers/permalink/2199807297077948/ [bare URL]
52. ^ https://uk.linkedin.com/in/ellenstrachan [bare URL]
53. ^ "Thamesmead Pollinator Corridor case study".
54. ^ "Instagram".
55. ^ https://twitter.com/UELSRI/status/1777362823250595927 [bare URL]
56. ^ "Instagram".
57. ^ https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02D67dmtuE3eWxW5hvmeG6hdrvC2BWQ6uMsv5R2zFWRnfGruYAvaQkbTApxwcTQAfCl&id=100083234957058 [bare URL]
58. ^ https://threeriversbexley.org/ [bare URL]
59. ^ http://www.eliseguillaumeart.com/ [bare URL]
60. ^ "Instagram".
61. ^ "Instagram".
62. ^ "2025 • Winter Sculpture Park".
63. ^ https://www.thamesmeadnow.org.uk/media/4414/thamesmeadnews_issueeleven_120_spreads.pdf [bare URL PDF]
64. ^ "Ridgeway goes wild".
65. ^ "Ridgeway Users Facebook". Facebook. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
66. ^ "Ridgeway Users (@ridgewayusers) • Instagram photos and videos".
67. ^ "Ridgeway Users Twitter". Retrieved 4 June 2020.
68. ^ "16/02241/FUL | Installation of a narrow gauge railway and modification to an existing industrial building for use as depot facilities for the railway. | The Old Works Crossness Sewage Treatment Works Bazalgette Way London SE2 9AQ". Pa.bexley.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
69. ^ "Support a new steam railway for South-East London". www.ianvisits.co.uk. 19 December 2018.
70. ^ "RANG Railway". Crowdfunder UK.
71. ^ "New light railway approved for South-East London". Ianvisits.co.uk. 11 March 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
72. ^ "Volunteers build 700-metre track to historic Victorian pumping station". Evening Standard. 25 January 2019.
73. ^ "Lombard Square: Revisions as it's realised 1,750-home Thamesmead development is beside prison". 5 November 2021.
74. ^ https://www.lombardsquarecommunity.co.uk/
75. ^ https://planning.org.uk/docs/20240524/53/_GRNW_DCAPR_120147/gs3cejmtjovzxv5r.pdf
76. ^ "A trip from Plumstead on the Ridgeway as thousands of homes rise". Fromthemurkydepths.wordpress.com. 28 July 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
77. ^ "Plumstead station area changes: Update from Greenwich Council". 8 July 2024.
78. ^ "Pettman Underpass improvements".
79. ^ Plumstead, Pettman Underpass Social Space Garden Creation Biodome Pyramid. "Building BioDomes for everyone. The Pharaoh Project: Change.org Petition". Pettman Underpass Social Space Garden Creation Biodome Pyramid Plumstead.
80. ^ "PharaohProject". www.facebook.com.
81. ^ "Thamesmead film studio set to replace church". 20 January 2022.
82. ^ "Film studio planned for Plumstead in power station redevelopment". 16 February 2022.
83. ^ https://greenwichwire.co.uk/2024/10/16/plumstead-power-station-film-studio-mo-sys-greenwich-council/
84. ^ "Long closed Plumstead Goods Yard beside Southeastern sidings could reopen". 2 September 2024.
85. ^ "24/2855/F | Construction of a rail served concrete batching plant with associated ancillary structures and facilities including: Messroom/Welfare Building, cycle, car and HGV parking. | Land at Former Plumstead Coal Yard, White Hart Road, Plumstead, SE28 1DF".
86. ^ "More rail freight for the North Kent Line with proposed Plumstead terminal". 10 September 2024.
87. ^ "Pathways to the Thames : Thamesmead".
88. ^ "Thamesview Golf Centre, Thamesmead. (1991 – 2014)".
89. ^ Chamberlain, Darryl (15 February 2019). "TfL lifts lid on possible Thamesmead DLR extension".
90. ^ deeplibrary (13 January 2011). "Plumstead to Cross Ness along the Southern Outfall Sewer".
91. ^ "I Ran the Elizabeth Line! 🏃🏻‍♂️🚂". YouTube. 31 May 2022.
92. ^ "Cripple Cruise". YouTube.
93. ^ "Stephen Turner - Everything from the Egg".
94. ^ "The Artists Agency: Stephen Turner".
95. ^ http://www.stephenturner.org.uk/ [bare URL]
96. ^ http://www.exburyeggtour.com/ [bare URL]
97. ^ "A good egg finds new home on Southmere Lake : Thamesmead".
98. ^ "More Plumstead murals appear - From The Murky Depths". 3 November 2018.
99. ^ "Royal Borough of Greenwich". www.facebook.com.
100. ^ "Instagram".
101. ^ https://www.facebook.com/groups/RidgewayUsers/permalink/2199807297077948/ [bare URL]
102. ^ https://uk.linkedin.com/in/ellenstrachan [bare URL]

### Start and end points

[edit]

* 51°29′24.3″N 0°05′10.0″E﻿ / ﻿51.490083°N 0.086111°E﻿ / 51.490083; 0.086111 The route's western start point
* 51°30′36.0″N 0°08′14.0″E﻿ / ﻿51.510000°N 0.137222°E﻿ / 51.510000; 0.137222 The route's eastern end point

* v
* t
* e

Named footpaths in London

* Beverley Brook Walk
* Capital Ring
* Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Walk
* Dollis Valley Greenwalk
* Greenway
* Hillingdon Trail
* Jubilee Greenway
* Jubilee Walkway
* Lea Valley Walk
* London Green Belt Way
* London Outer Orbital Path
* New River Path
* Parkland Walk
* Pymmes Brook Trail
* Ridgeway
* Shakespeare's Way
* South East London Green Chain
* Thames Down Link
* Thames Path
* Vanguard Way
* Wandle Trail
* Waterlink Way

* v
* t
* e

Parks and open spaces in London

Royal parks|

* Bushy
* Green
* Greenwich
* Hyde
* Kensington
* Regent's
* Richmond
* St James's

Large urban parks|

* Alexandra
* Arnos
* Barking
* Barra Hall
* Battersea
* Beckenham Place Park
* Blackheath
* Brockwell
* Burgess
* Charlton
* Clissold
* Crystal Palace
* Dulwich
* Enfield Town
* Finsbury
* Forster Memorial
* Hampstead Heath
* Hanworth
* Holland
* Mayesbrook
* Mountsfield
* Old Deer
* Parsloes
* Primrose Hill
* Pymmes
* Queen's Park
* Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
* Ravenscourt
* Ruskin
* Southwark
* Valentines
* Victoria
* Wandsworth
* Wanstead
* Waterlow Park
* West Ham
* Wimbledon

Country parks|

* Bayhurst Wood
* Bedfont Lakes
* Belhus Woods
* Eastbrookend
* Fairlop Waters
* Foots Cray
* Fryent
* Hainault Forest
* Havering
* High Elms
* Hornchurch
* Lee Valley
* South Norwood
* Stanmore
* Stockley
* Trent

Commons|

* Barnes
* Blackheath
* Bostall Heath
* Clapham
* Ealing
* East Sheen
* Eel Brook
* Eltham
* Hackney Marshes
* Hainault Forest
* Ham
* Hampstead Heath
* Hayes
* Keston
* Mitcham
* Monken Hadley
* Peckham Rye
* Plumstead
* Stanmore
* Streatham
* Sutton
* Tooting
* Tylers
* Wandsworth
* Wimbledon and Putney
* Winn's
* Woolwich
* Wormwood Scrubs

Village greens|

* Camberwell
* Crooked Billet
* Islington
* Kew
* Newington
* Parsons
* Richmond
* Shepherd's Bush
* Turnham
* Twickenham

Marshes and wetlands|

* Crayford
* Erith
* Hackney
* Hornchurch
* Ickenham
* Ingrebourne
* Leyton
* Rainham, Wennington, and Aveley
* Tottenham
* Walthamstow
* Woodberry Wetlands
* WWT London Wetland Centre

Woodland|

* Bostall
* Braeburn
* Coldfall
* Copse
* Dulwich
* Epping Forest
* Grangewood Park
* Highgate
* Lesnes Abbey
* Mad Bess
* Old Park
* Oxleas
* Park
* Petts
* Queen's
* Repository Woods
* Russia Dock
* Sydenham Hill

House gardens|

* Avenue House
* Belair Park
* Boston Manor Park
* Broomfield House
* Cannizaro Park
* Chiswick House
* Danson Park
* Grovelands Park
* Grove Park
* Gunnersbury Park
* Hall Place
* Hampton Court Park
* Hillingdon Court
* Kenwood House
* Lamorbey Park
* Langtons
* Manor House Gardens
* Marble Hill Park
* Morden Hall Park
* Morden Park
* Osterley Park
* Syon House
* Valence House Museum
* Walpole Park

Entry-fee charging|

* Kew Gardens
* London Wetland Centre

Community gardens|

* Phoenix Garden

* v
* t
* e

Parks and open spaces by London borough

* Barking and Dagenham
* Barnet
* Bexley
* Brent
* Bromley
* Camden
* Croydon
* Ealing
* Enfield
* Greenwich
* Hackney
* Hammersmith and Fulham
* Haringey
* Harrow
* Havering
* Hillingdon
* Hounslow
* Islington
* Kensington and Chelsea
* Kingston upon Thames
* Lambeth
* Lewisham
* Merton
* Newham
* Redbridge
* Richmond upon Thames
* Southwark
* Sutton
* Tower Hamlets
* Waltham Forest
* Wandsworth
* City of Westminster

51°29′48″N 0°06′29″E﻿ / ﻿51.496686°N 0.1079209°E﻿ / 51.496686; 0.1079209
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