The Silvertown Link is a new Thames river crossing proposed to supplement the existing Blackwall Tunnel

Blackwall Tunnel

The Blackwall Tunnel is a pair of road tunnels underneath the River Thames in east London, linking the London Borough of Tower Hamlets with the London Borough of Greenwich, and part of the A102 road. The northern portal lies just south of the East India Dock Road in Blackwall; the southern...

, although this crossing will join the Greenwich Peninsula

Greenwich Peninsula

Greenwich Peninsula is an area of South London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.The peninsula is bounded on three sides by a loop of the Thames, between the Isle of Dogs and Silvertown. To the south is the rest of Greenwich, to the south-east is Charlton.The peninsula lies...

 with West Silvertown

Silvertown

Silvertown is an industrialised district on the north bank of the Thames in the London Borough of Newham. It was named after Samuel Winkworth Silver's former rubber factory which opened in 1852, and is now dominated by the Tate & Lyle sugar refinery and the John Knight ABP animal rendering...

.

It is intended to ease traffic congestion around the Blackwall Tunnel. The previous London Mayor, Ken Livingstone

Ken Livingstone

Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...

, supported the scheme in principle and had expressed a preference for the Link to take the form of a road tunnel

Tunnel

A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...

, but this will only be finally decided after a process of assessment and consultation.

The timescale for this is longer than the related Thames Gateway Bridge

Thames Gateway Bridge

The Thames Gateway Bridge was a proposed crossing over the River Thames in east London, England. It was first mooted in the 1970s but never came to fruition...

 which was proposed for completion in 2013. Transport for London

Transport for London

Transport for London is the local government body responsible for most aspects of the transport system in Greater London in England. Its role is to implement the transport strategy and to manage transport services across London...

 (TfL) intends to review the Link proposal by April 2006 with a view to establishing a more detailed programme for the project. Its Transport Strategy states that the Silvertown Link will follow the implementation of the Thames Gateway Bridge. In order to gain efficiencies, TfL wants to use expertise from the Thames Gateway Bridge team on the Silvertown Link progressively as planning and preparation are completed for the Bridge.

The Docklands Light Railway

Docklands Light Railway

The Docklands Light Railway is an automated light metro or light rail system opened on 31 August 1987 to serve the redeveloped Docklands area of London...

's London City Airport extension includes a station at Thames Wharf which cannot yet be constructed due to planning safeguards on the site for this river crossing.

External links

• Silvertown Link at www.AlwaysTouchOut.com