New London bridge: 8 weird and wonderful designs

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​​​​Designs for a new London footbridge will go on display this week, and they include a vast array of bizarre and fantastical proposals (click the image above to see a gallery).

Developers planning to link Pimlico with Nine Elms as part of the redevelopment of the area around Battersea Power Station in south-west London invited professional design team to submit their ideas to an open competition.

According to The Atlantic, that's not a sensible way to go about urban planning. "Competition designs often look hasty, poorly thought out, or needlessly flashy," it says. "If London means to build a folly, this is the way to go about it."

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The Londonist is more measured in its assessment. "Some are perhaps more practical than others," it says.

The 74 entrants will be on show to the public tomorrow and on Saturday, before a jury draws up a shortlist of up to four proposals next month. The winner will be announced on 24 July.

The images will be displayed at the ROSE Centre, Ascalon Street at 1pm-7pm on 27 February and 10am-6pm on 28 February