Wandsworth Borough Council, the highway authority responsible for Putney Bridge, said the historic river crossing will close to vehicles when major £1.5million repair works start on July 12. It is not expected to re-open for 12 weeks.

It will overlap with 10 weeks of repairs being carried out on Hammersmith Flyover, which started on May 30.

Putney Bridge, which connects Putney on the south of the river to Fulham in the north, is having its waterproof membrane replaced after defects in the current one was blamed for the poor road surface.

The Grade II listed bridge will still be open to pedestrians and cyclists, who must dismount and walk across it.

Buses will operate a shuttle service from both ends of the bridge, meaning passengers can cross the bridge on foot before continuing their journey.

Robert Vernazza owns the family-run River Café, at the foot of the bridge in Station Approach. He said: “It will cause so much traffic. People come from all over the place to use Putney Bridge.

“But the repair work does need doing.

“It will be a pain, but if it needs to be done, it needs to be done.”

The timing of the repairs have been drawn up to avoid coinciding with the Wimbledon tennis championships, but it will still be taking place when Fulham kicks off the new football season in August.

Originally, the repair works, which will aim to tackle the bridge’s poor quality road surface and potholes once and for all, were due to take six months.

Work will be carried out between 6am and midnight on weekdays and 10am to 4pm on weekends.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council says it will monitor the works closely to ensure Wandsworth Council sticks to its timetable and keeps disruption to a minimum.

It has arranged for Wandsworth Council to write to businesses and residents in Fulham to tell them about the closure and make sure people have as much warning as possible.

There will be no formal diversionary routes, with a Wandsworth Council spokesman saying: “Drivers will know best which alternative routes they prefer and which are the most convenient for them.”

Work on Putney Bridge will clash with repairs currently taking place on Hammersmith Flyover.