Silvertown Tunnel Works From The Cable Car – 6th April 2025
As the Silvertown Tunnel opens tomorrow, I thought I’d take a last few pictures before the tunnel is filled with traffic.
Google AI describes the distinctive green conical building in many of the pictures like this.
The distinctive green conical building at the Silvertown Tunnel entrance in Newham is a services building housing essential tunnel maintenance and operation equipment, placed on a green landscaped plinth above the tunnel entrance.
Compare these pictures with those in Silvertown Tunnel Works From The Cable Car – 8th January 2025.
This Google Map shows the North entrance to the Silvertown Tunnel.
Note.
- The red arrow indicates City Hall.
- Just to City Hall’s East is the Northern cable-car terminal.
- A dual-carriageway A 1011 Silvertown Way separates City Hall from the North entrance of the Silvertown Tunnel.
- The City Airport branch of the Docklands Light Railway forms a Western border to the North entrance of the Silvertown Tunnel.
- You can always trust politicians to make it easy for their drive to work.
Click on the map to show it to a larger scale.
Silvertown Tunnel Works From The Cable Car – 8th January 2025
I took the pictures in Silvertown Tunnel Works – 1st January 2025 from the Docklands Light Railway.
I took these pictures from the Emirates Air Line or whatever it is called today.
Heights And Me
I find a ride on the Cable Car to be very refreshing.
I also used to like being at height in an unpressurised light aircraft.
Is this unusual? A doctor, who has appeared in mountaineering documentaries on the BBC thinks so, but then doctors have a good laugh about my skin, which doesn’t seem to need a plaster after a blood test or injection.
New Fast Bus Service To Link London’s Outer Boroughs
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
A new fast service bus network has been announced for London’s outer boroughs.
These three paragraphs outline the concept.
Six new routes will be created and four incorporated into the ‘Superloop’ network, complete with distinct branding.
The plans propose a fast service to make more stops linking many of the peripheral boroughs.
The network is part of London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s effort to compensate for the impact of the ultra-low emission zone expansion, due to start in August.
This draft map from TfL illustrates the concept.
In the draft map, the following can be discerned.
- Arnos Grove station is in the North.
- West Croydon station is in the South.
- Royal Docks and Bexleyheath are in the East.
- Uxbridge and Hayes & Harlington stations are in the West.
- Elizabeth Line stations on the route include Ilford, Custom House, Heathrow Airport and Hayes & Harlington.
The plan may work well, as in the 1950s and 1960s, I used the 107 bus route very regularly, as it cut a circular path between Queensbury in the West and Enfield in the East.
I have some thoughts.
Royal Docks And Bexleyheath
This Google Map shows the Royal Docks.
Note.
- The dotted red line indicates the Royal Docks.
- The runway of the London City Airport can be seen.
- Custom House station on the Elizabeth Line is served by the Elizabeth Line and the Docklands Light Railway.
This second Google Map shows the Western end of the Royal Victoria Dock.
Note.
- Custom House station is in the North-East corner of the map.
- The Excel is on the East end of the map.
- London City Hall is at the Western end of the Royal Victoria Dock.
- The cable-car to Greenwich connects to the area.
I would suspect that the bus from Walthamstow will terminate close to City Hall and the cable-car.
This Google Map shows the Royal Docks and Bexleyheath.
Note.
- The dotted red line indicates the Royal Docks.
- Bexleyheath station is in the South-East corner of the map.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Mayor organise a bus, through his new pet project; the Silvertown Tunnel.
Electric Or Hydrogen
Ideally, the buses will need to be zero-carbon; which means battery-electric or some form of hydrogen power.
Birmingham has a similar series of express routes, that run across the city, which I wrote about in Riding Birmingham’s New Hydrogen-Powered Buses.
I feel that long routes like some of these are should be run with hydrogen-powered buses, because of there longer range.
Construction Has Started On The Silvertown Tunnel
These pictures show that construction has started on the Silverton Tunnel.
Note that New Civil Engineer is reporting that tunnelling has started.
My Current Thoughts On The Silvertown Tunnel
In 2015, I wrote No To Silvertown Tunnel, which I started with these two paragraphs.
My personal feelings about the Silvertown Tunnel are that it is irrelevant to me, except that it might help some trucks bring goods that I buy online or at a local shop. Although as a sixty-eight year-old-widower living alone, I don’t think my transport needs through the tunnel will be high.
I don’t drive after my stroke and I like that lifestyle, except when last night it took me three trains, a coach and a taxi to get back from watching football at Ipswich. But that tortuous late night journey was caused because NuLabor spent my tax money on pointless wars that will haunt us for generations, rather than in extending and renewing our rail system, that will nurture and enrich our future.
But my objections to the Silvertown Tunnel have changed and expanded.
New Transport Infrastructure Attracts Passengers
This may seem obvious, but there has been several cases recently in London to prove my point.
- The London Overground has been a success beyond Transport for London’s wildest dreams and as an example the North London Line, that started with three x three-car trains per hour (tph) is now running eight x five-car tph. This is a four time increase in capacity.
- New buses and contactless ticketing have encouraged more passengers to use the buses.
- Electrification and new trains has transformed the Gospel Oak to Barking Line.
- The expansion of Thameslink and new trains now carries a lot more North-South traffic through London.
- Every time, a new section of the Elizabeth Line opens more passengers are attracted to the new line.
- The remodelling of London Bridge station has increased passenger numbers. And shoppers!
On a personal note, I live on a bus corridor, that runs between North London and Moorgate for the Lizzie Line. Since the Lizzie Line has been fully connected, passenger numbers have risen by a big margin.
I don’t believe that the ability to attract more traffic of the Silvertown Tunnel will be any different.
More Traffic Means More Congestion And Pollution
I live close to the Balls Pond Road, which increasingly seems to be a truck route across North London.
The Silvertown Tunnel will be two lanes each way; one for trucks and buses, and one for smaller vehicles.
I can’t see that pollution and congestion around the Silvertown Tunnel and on the routes to the tunnel, will not increase.
There Is Little Or No Provision For Cyclists And Pedestrians
This will be a big problem. Especially, as the local traffic in the area will increase dramatically.
Does Central London Have Enough Parking For The Increased Traffic?
Parking in Central London is probably close to capacity now!
So What Would I Do?
Given that construction has already started, I feel it is too late to cancel.
Better Alternatives Than Driving
I feel measures should be adopted that provide better alternatives than driving.
Obviously, this won’t help with trucks, but it could reduce the total number of vehicles going through the tunnel.
These could include.
- Increase the frequency of trains on both the Lizzie Line and Thameslink.
- Increase the number of destinations on both the Lizzie Line and Thameslink.
- Add an extra car to Lizzie Line trains.
- Remove First Class on the shorter eight-car Thameslink trains.
- Add provision on some Lizzie Line and Thameslink routes for bicycles.
- Add a Silvertown station to the Elizabeth Line for London City Airport.
- Add one or more pedestrian and cycling bridges across the Thames.
- Expand of the Docklands Light Railway.
- Expand the Thames Clipper.
- Connect Barking Riverside station to Thamesmead and Abbey Wood station either by a rail or a fast ferry.
- Keep the cable-car.
I suspect there are other viable ideas.
Develop Incentives To Use Public Transport
Incentives could be in these areas.
- Better station and bus terminals encourage more to use trains and buses.
- Full free onboard wi-fi and phone charging.
- Special fares for some journeys.
An example of the latter could be a discount for certain cross-river journeys.
Make The Silvertown Tunnel Available For Zero Carbon Vehicles Only
This would surely cut pollution in London.
Conclusion
We should use the Silvertown Tunnel to improve London’s air quality.
Plans For Cable Cars Between Bristol Temple Meads And Clifton Suspension Bridge
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Bristol Live.
The title only says half of it, as this is only the first route.
Conclusion
I like the idea!
I also think we should have more!
£82m, 30m High Aerial Tramway Vision Would Link Eden Project North To Lancaster University And M6
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Lancaster Guardian.
This is the first two paragraphs.
Proposals for an £82m aerial tramway project linking Lancaster, Morecambe and the university have been drawn up by the man behind the initial plans for Eden Project North.
Standing at more than 30m high, the Aerial Tramway System would link the proposed Eden Project North, the Bay Gateway, Lancaster Railway Station, the University of Cumbria’s Lancaster campus, Lancaster University and junction 33 of the M6 motorway.
Iy is an interesting suggestion.
But I do question the cost.
The Emirates Air Line in London has the following characteristics.
- I kilometre in length
- 2 stations
- 34 gondolas in use at one time.
- ten-seat gondolas
- 90 metres maximum height.
The proposed Lancaster and Morecambe aerial tramway has the following characteristics.
- I0 kilometres in length
- 5 stations
- 30 gondolas in use at one time.
- thirty-five-seat gondolas
- 30 metres maximum height.
As the cost of the Emirate Air Line is reported at £60million, I’m afraid that £82million for the Lancaster and Morecambe aerial tramway are slightly ambitious.
In Getting To The Proposed Morecambe Eden Project By Train, I laid out how a large zero-carbon rail system could develop around Morecambe.
I also concluded that journeys to and from Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Manchester, could be made zero-carbon.
Conclusion
There could be better ways to acgieve the same local objectives.
The Future Of The Emirates Air Line
I’ve always liked the Emirates Air Line, but I hadn’t used it for some time until today.
As I was in the area, I used it to cross the river, this morning.
I can make these observations.
The Weather Could Have Been Better
The cable-car needs sunny weather, although I did once go across in the snow.
The Cable-Car Wasn’t Busy
Compare today’s pictures wit this one taken in February 2014.
The Cable Car Was Busy
One of the attendants said it was becoming more of a tourist attraction rather than a means of transport.
This meant today, I had a car to myself and didn’t have to share it with several excited kids.
I think too, that the weather was against visitors and tourists now know the best times to use the cable car.
In my view, when the sun is setting is by far the best.
There Are A Lot More Skyscrapers
The last time I rode across was in March 2016, after which I wrote Riding The Cable Car.
There has been a lot of high rise building in the intervening years.
I suspect that as more and more skyscrapers are built, a ride between them all across the river will become more popular.
The Line
The Line is a sculpture trail, that runs from Greenwich to the Olympic Park. The cable-car has to be used by non-swimmers to cross the river.
The Line is connected OR or close to London’s railways as follows.
- Stratford – Central Line, Jubilee Line, DLR, London Overground, National Rail and in the future; Crossrail.
- Stratford High Street – DLR
- Pudding Mill Lane – DLR
- Bromley-by-Bow – District and Hammersmith & City Lines
- Star Lane – DLR
- Canning Town – Jubilee Line and DLR
- Royal Victoria – DLR
- North Greenwich – Jubilee Line
All these connections mean that it can be done in sections.
The Tide
The Tide is an partly elevated five km route, that will be linked to the cable-car, that will be fully-open in two years.
Crossrail
Crossrail will affect all travel in East London and it connects at Stratford stayion to The Line.
I don’t know the route of the Tide, but it may make walking from the O2 to Woolwich sttion for Crossrail much more relaxing.
Although it doesn’t serve Greenwich directly, I believe Crossrail will draw more tourists to the cable-car.
Docklands Light Railway
The DLR is getting new trains in the next few years and an extension to Thamesmead.
As with Crossrail it will draw more tourists to the area and the cable-car.
Thames Clippers
These are expanding and they will bring more tourists to the cable-car.
Conclusion
These and other factors, such as tourists venturing out of the centre of London, will mean that more vistors will explore the East and use the cable-car.
Up And Down Pilatus
These pictures document my trip up the Pilatus Railway and then down to Lucerne by cable-car.
Note.
- I started from Alpnachstad station, which is about twenty minutes from Lucerne station.
- The round trip took just under two hours.
- It cost me half price of 36 CHF, with my Swiss Pass.
I probably went up rather too early in the day, as the views would have been better later on.
Up The Schilthorn
I took these pictures on the ascent by cable-car of the Schilthorn.
Note.
- The ascent was on three successive cable-cars.
- As the weather was good, it was rather busy with waits at the cable-car changes.
- This ascent is included in a Swiss Pass and the only thing, I needed to do was get a free ticket at the first change.
- The windows on one cable-car could have done with a good clean.
It was certainly a good value ride.
Ascending The Heights Of Abraham
The Heights of Abraham is a tourist attraction at Matlock Bath, close to the station.
I walked down, as I needed to get a train back to Derby. I did it in sensible trainers and don’t do it in anything less!
I’m sure this attraction would benefit from a better train service from Derby and Nottingham.
The Anonymous Widower 