Silvertown Tunnel is set to open at the beginning of April (Image: Tfl)
The expansion of Silvertown Tunnel, connecting Silvertown to the Greenwhich Penninsula in East London, has been met with concerns as the opening date gets closer. The Victorian-era tunnel aims to cut congestion with trips across the river being slashed by about 20 minutes on average. But since its approval in 2018, the controversial project .
The tunnel, which is , has been funded with a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) against future earnings for £2.2 billion, but signs are showing that drivers might be planning to avoid the tunnel completely. People who live in Barking & Dagenham, Bexley, Bromley, City of London, Greenwich, Hackney, Havering, Lewisham, Newham, Redbridge, Southwark, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Foreston who claim certain benefits are entitled to a 50% discount on the tunnel’s toll charge.
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However, only 1,131 Londoners, businesses and charities have applied for the Silvertown Tunnel’s toll discount scheme. The discount is set to be available for at least the next three years.
Meanwhile, locals will have access to free bus fares across the tunnel for the first year after it opens. There will also be discounts for sole traders, small businesses and charities.
There will be peak and off-peak pricing for use of the tunnel with drivers
Drivers will be charged £1.50 during off peak times but will pay £4 during peak times, which is 6am to 10am northbound and 4pm to 7pm southbound.
Meanwhille, motorcycle, moped and motor tricycle users will pay £1.50 during off-peak and £2.50 during peak times.
Applications began on January 27, 2025 but as it stands, 904 residents and 229 businesses and charities have applied for it. Hina Bokhari, the London Assembly’s Liberal Democrat group leader, called this “worrying”.
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She said more needs to be done to make people aware of the discounts. But a Transport for London (TfL) spokesperson told : “Messaging explaining the low income and business discount is appearing in local press, radio, and online video supported by a general discounts message in video on demand channels.
“In addition, more than 1.5 million leaflets have been delivered to residents in 13 east London boroughs, [and] more than 80,000 leaflets have been directly mailed to businesses in Greenwich, Newham and Tower Hamlets where the business discount will be available.”
TfL has also argued that the Blackwall Tunnel, where drivers will have to pay to use it from April 7, was never designed for the levels of traffic that now try and cross the river every day.
“Incidents with larger, unsuitable vehicles frequently cause delays and closures; Idling traffic builds up, often leading to tailbacks of several miles in just a few minutes,” the organisation said. “This increases journey times, as drivers either queue in traffic or choose longer routes to avoid the tunnel. It also has a negative impact on air quality.”