Car drivers using the Blackwall and Silvertown tunnels face paying 20p more to use the crossings during the rush hour, according to Transport for London papers.

A northbound car trip between 6am and 10am and a southbound journey between 4pm and 7pm will rise from £4 to £4.20 if plans are approved. All other trips between 6am and 10pm are due to go up from £1.50 to £1.55.

TfL is consulting with councils in southeast and east London on the revised charges, which would be introduced in September, according to the paper going before its finance committee on Thursday.

The rises – an average of 4.4 per cent – are based on inflation between December 2024, when the initial charges were finalised, and March this year, although come out as slightly lower than the actual rate of 4.9 per cent because of rounding to the nearest 5p. 

TfL’s rail and Tube passengers faced a higher increase in the spring when fares went up by 5.9 per cent – inflation plus 1 percentage point.

In future, TfL plans to increase tunnel tolls at the same time as bus and Tube fares, in March each year. 

The Blackwall Tunnel, running between the Greenwich Peninsula and Poplar, was free to use from its opening in 1897 until April last year, when the Silvertown Tunnel opened.  The tolls are in place to pay off the £2 billion cost of the new tunnel and to stop it being overwhelmed with traffic, as happened when the second Blackwall Tunnel opened in the late 1960s.

The other main route across the Thames, the Dartford Crossing, has a flat £2.80 charge for those who pay in advance, making it cheaper in the rush-hour but more expensive off-peak.

In February, a meeting of traffic officers from councils in southeast and east London was told that traffic through the two tunnels was up by 8 per cent as congestion had eased, with a 3 per cent decrease overall southbound, while evening queues had increased at the Woolwich Ferry.

TfL also said it was monitoring higher than expected traffic levels at Kidbrooke Park Road, Tunnel Avenue and Blackheath Hill; Trundleys Road in Deptford, which carries traffic for the Rotherhithe Tunnel; as well as on roads around the northern entrance to the Blackwall Tunnel. 

The finance committee at TfL will discuss the planned increases on Thursday.

Proposed tolls: 

  • Tunnel tolls: Car and small van drivers would pay £1.55 at off-peak times (up 5p), and £4.20 (up 20p) during peak hours – applying northbound between 6am and 10am and southbound between 4pm and 7pm. 
  • Other users: Motorbike riders would pay £1.55 (up 5p) at off-peak times or £2.50 (up 10p) in peak times; large van drivers £2.60 (up 10p) or £6.80 (up 30p); while HGVs would be charged £5.25 (up 25p) or £10.50 (up 50p). 
  • Some discounts are available for low-income residents and small businesses. 
  • How to pay: Sign up to TfL AutoPay to get off-peak rates and pay as you travel.

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