Skip to main content

London's new Silvertown Tunnel set to open

TfL says average peak journey times expected to be 20 minutes quicker
By Adam Hill January 13, 2025 Read time: 2 mins
Tunnel vision (© Hupeng | Dreamstime.com)

The new Silvertown Tunnel beneath the River Thames in the east of London, UK, is set to open on 7 April 2025.

The 1.4km-long twin-bore tunnel has two lanes per tunnel with dedicated lanes for heavy goods vehicles and buses. 

Indra has equipped the new structure with its In-Mova Traffic platform and intelligent transport systems including communication systems, radio communications network and traffic signals. 

Citilog has integrated its automatic incident detection system, which includes 59 CCTV cameras, to help reduce congestion in and around the tunnel. It provides real-time incident detection and response to enhance safety and incident management, and is designed to minimise false alarms while maintaining high detection accuracy.

Using thousands of video clips will help train an advanced network to reduce false positives, allowing operators to focus on genuine emergencies.

The new tunnel runs between the London borough of Greenwich, the peninsula area, and West Silvertown on the northern bank of the Thames.

Transport for London (TfL) says modelling shows it will help reduce congestion at the existing Blackwall Tunnel, with average journey times expected to be up to 20 minutes quicker at peak times.

It will also help manage overall air quality and allow for better cross-river public transport, TfL says, with new bus routes - free for the first year - meaning that bus crossings increase from six to 21 per hour.

While you will not be able to walk or cycle through the tunnel, a new zero-emission cycle-shuttle service is due to operate every 12 minutes, seven days a week.

Related Content

  • Siemens Mobility is clearing the air
    October 2, 2020
    Tens of thousands of premature deaths in the UK alone are linked to air quality - but it doesn’t have to be that way. Siemens Mobility’s Wilke Reints explains why
  • Car traffic in London is down but congestion is up, says new study
    May 18, 2016
    London Congestion Trends, an in-depth study of the causes of traffic congestion in London between 2012 and 2015 published by Inrix, indicates that congestion in London is increasing, with journey times in Central London growing by 12 per cent annually. Inrix says this is consistent with data that shows that the London economy and population are growing, which normally results in an increase in gridlock. Further, unemployment and fuel prices are down, both of which usually mean a rise in traffic. Despite thi
  • Irish tunnel contracts awarded to Egis
    October 16, 2014
    Ireland’s National Roads Authority (NRA) has awarded Egis the renewal and extension of the operation and maintenance contract of the Dublin Tunnel for a period of six years, with a possible four-year extension. This new contract follows a first operation and maintenance contract awarded to the Group in February 2006 and includes the toll collection, traffic and safety management and routine maintenance, including winter and equipment maintenance. It also includes the operation and maintenance of the
  • Luton signals green ambition with TRL
    January 17, 2023
    UK town chooses UTC powered by Scoot 7 to control traffic signal network