Flooding in London has been a problem since the city was first established in Roman times. In 1954 the Waverley Committee, established to investigate the serious North Sea flood of 1953 which affected parts of the Thames Estuary and parts of London, recommended that "as an alternative to raising the banks, the possibility and cost of erecting a structure across the Thames which could be closed in a surge should be urgently investigated". A large number of designs were put forward, ranging from a huge road viaduct with two 500 foot (150 m) sluice gates crossing the Thames at Crayfordness to flap gates lying on the river bed and floated up by compressed air. By 1965, when the Greater London Council (GLC) took over responsibility, two major schemes were under consideration, costed at £24 million and £41 million respectively (£500 million and £800 million at 2020 prices).