Silvertown and Blackwall tunnels: Fear tolls will create ‘two-tier London’

The London mayor says he is looking forward to opening a new tolled road tunnel in south-east London, even though its opponents say it is unjust and unfair and will increase pollution.

Tolls on the new Silvertown Tunnel are due come into force next year, alongside new tolls on the existing nearby Blackwall Tunnel.

It could cost cars and small vans £4 per trip in peak hours or £1.50 off peak. There would be a reduction for some drivers, for example those on low incomes.

Bexley councillor Richard Diment says the tolls will create a “two-tier London”, adding: “In central and western London, where there are far more crossings, no tolls are charged. It will make south-east London even more isolated than it is already.”

He is particularly against the decision to toll Blackwall tunnel, “which has had no toll on it since it opened in the 1890s”.

“Over here in the east, where we have relatively few river crossings, people are going to have to pay.

“It creates a two-tier London.”

The tolls are set to be introduced when the Silvertown Tunnel opens. Peak hours will be 06:00-10:00 northbound and 16:00-19:00 southbound.

Transport for London (TfL) says a recent eight-week consultation until 3 September gave Londoners the chance to have their say on the proposed toll charge levels and any discounts or exemptions.

The boring of the Silvertown Tunnel has been completed right next to the existing Blackwall Tunnel. Work is continuing to join the tunnels to the road network.

The Silvertown Tunnel is 1.4km (just under one mile) long and stretches from Silvertown in Newham to the Greenwich Peninsula.

TfL says the scheme will address queues at the Blackwall Tunnel and reduce pollution. But it has faced fierce opposition from those who think it will do the total opposite and increase pollution and congestion.

Dominic Leggett is from the campaign group Stop Silvertown Tunnel. He says there is no guarantee that the building of a new tunnel and having tolls can be used to set levels of traffic in the way that TfL claims.

“Opening Silvertown Tunnel creates a lot of new pollution, a lot of new carbon emissions. The toll just brings it down approximately to a level where we are now,” he says.

“That’s if they get the toll right.”

He adds: “The problem is there’s no legal imperative to put the toll in place so any future mayor can remove the toll if they want to, at that point the traffic will shoot up again.

“So we have actually seen, previously, Boris Johnson took away the western extension of the congestion charge when he became mayor and we saw traffic and pollution increase in west London.

“We would see the same thing here if we got a mayor who wants to remove the charge.”

Another concern is if the Blackwall Tunnel should have to close, the tailbacks would block the A102 road that leads to the Silvertown Tunnel.

“The mayor is between a rock and a hard place. If he reduces the toll now, we see more pollution and more traffic,” Mr Leggett says.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan reviewed the scheme when he came into office and says it will be a vital link across the Thames to east London.

Mr Khan, who is chair of TfL, gave the tunnel the go-ahead, funded with a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) against future earnings. The cost was £2.2bn.

He also increased the number of bus services that will use it. And there will also be a bus to carry cyclists and their bikes across.

On three bus routes that use the tunnel, there will be free travel for “at least a year” says the mayor. There will also be free travel for that period on the Docklands Light Railway between Cutty Sark and Island Gardens, and from Woolwich Arsenal to King George V stations.

The mayor says the toll charges for motorists will help with current congestion at the crossing: “The current Blackwall Tunnel is, on an average basis, closed 700 times a year.

“A five-minute closure leads to a three-mile tailback, leads to problems for small businesses, those trading, those using the tunnel.

“The most unreliable bus in London is a single decker that uses the Blackwall Tunnel. By having a charge on both tunnels we can have improved public transport, improved river crossings, less congestion, better air quality.”

Liam Davis created a petition objecting to the tolls, which has so far been signed by 31,000 people. He says: “It has slipped under most people’s radars.

“They haven’t been aware that this is opening and it’s such a contentious issue. I think people will re-examine their transport options and affordability.

“I think that some people may take advantage of working from home.”

He added: “But the people who have to come to work five days a week, for example nurses and teachers, I don’t think they have very much choice.

“I think they will bear a heavy burden for this. I also think there may be displacement to free options like Rotherhithe Tunnel or even Tower Bridge. I can see traffic moving into different places in east London.”

He thinks every crossing in London should have a small toll instead of drivers in east London being unfairly targeted.

The mayor says the tolls pay for the tunnel: “The charge for using the Silvertown tunnel helps pay for the Silvertown tunnel. Not just the design, not just the building, but finance and the maintenance of the tunnel as well.”

“It’s not taxpayers paying for this or Tube users, it’s future users of the Silvertown tunnel. But to avoid there being displacement, we are going to make sure the Blackwall Tunnel and the Silvertown Tunnel are improved but also are fit for purpose.”

Mr Khan also says the tolls are justified and control the impact of extra traffic: “What we are not going to be seeing is huge numbers of additional people using the Silvertown and the Blackwall [tunnels] because there’s a charge there.”

However, Bexley councillor Richard Diment argues the scheme is unfair: “I can just imagine the uproar there would be if a new crossing was put into west London somewhere and suddenly Putney Bridge or Chiswick Bridge had a toll placed on it.

“I’m sure the local population and residents would not put up with that and I don’t see why we should put up with it in east London either.”

Christina Calderato, TfL’s director of strategy, said: “We recently carried out an eight-week consultation on our user charging scheme, so Londoners could have their say on the proposed charge levels and wide range of discounts and exemptions.

She said the proposed supporting measures aimed to ensure the scheme is “green and fair for Londoners and businesses”.

“These measures will ensure that the new tunnel delivers on its objectives of reducing congestion and providing resilience at the Blackwall Tunnel, while ensuring we support local residents on low income, small businesses, sole traders and local charities

She said the transport body was assessing the public consultation responses ahead of presenting its recommendations to the TfL Board “for their consideration and approval before the end of the year”.