The forthcoming toll on the Blackwall tunnel could result in some drivers paying up to “£35 to £40 each day” to get to work, a London MP has warned.
Transport for London announced last week that tolls will be introduced at Blackwall tunnel – for the first time in 130 years – from Monday April 7, in conjunction with the opening on the same day of the nearby Silvertown tunnel.
Both tunnels will have the same toll levies. Car drivers, and drivers of small vans, will have to pay £1.50 off peak and £4 per crossing at peak times, while drivers of large vans will pay £6.50 at peak times.
Tory MP Louie French said that some drivers would have to pay the tunnel toll, the £12.50 ultra-low emission zone levy and the £15 congestion charge if they entered central London in a Ulez-non-compliant vehicle.
He has launched a petition calling on London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan to scrap the Blackwall tunnel toll. More than 6,500 people have signed the online petition.
Mr French said the Blackwall tunnel tolls were “likely to impact over 100,000 drivers in the east and south-east of London every single day”.
He warned of a “congestion nightmare” as drivers sought to avoid paying the Blackwall or Silvertown tunnel tolls by diverting through the Rotherhithe tunnel or travelling via the Dartford crossing on the M25 motorway.
Sadiq Khan is imposing a toll on the Blackwall Tunnel on 7 April, ending over a century of free crossings.
It will cost cars £4 and vans £6.50 per crossing at peak times. This is unfair and unaffordable.
Sign my petition and help stop the toll: https://t.co/EiGDVz4Ys5 pic.twitter.com/YGSIbF2Use
— Louie French MP (@louie_french) January 10, 2025
Mr French, the MP for Old Bexley and Sidcup, said: “In addition to the mayor’s expansion of the Ulez zone and the increased charges for the congestion charge, this new toll could see drivers having to pay around £35 to £40 each day just to get to work – that is before we consider the impact of fuel costs or parking charges in the capital.
“This is deeply unfair on hard-working drivers across the capital – the likes of small business owners or those that need to see friends and family on either side of the river.
“It is especially unfair when you consider the large number of free crossings elsewhere in the capital.”
The Ulez was expanded across Greater London in August 2023. More than 97 per cent of cars seen being driven within Greater London are Ulez compliant and not liable for the £12.50 levy, but only about 90 per cent of vans comply wit the exhaust emission rules.
This means that about 53,000 cars and 23,000 vans spotted by TfL cameras in London each day are liable for the Ulez.
About 40,000 vehicles a day are liable for the congestion charge.
The Ulez operates on a 24/7 basis.
The congestion charge’s operating hours are 7am-6pm on weekdays and midday to 6pm at weekends. The weekend charging hours were introduced by Sir Sadiq during the pandemic. Previously, the C-charge only applied on weekdays.
Sir Sadiq Khan: says the Silvertown tunnel will cut peak journey times by up to 20 minutes (Daniel Hambury/Stella Pictures)
Drivers will have to pay to use the Blackwall and Silvertown tunnels between 6am and 10pm seven days a week.
Peak hours apply 6am-10am northbound and 4pm-7pm southbound on weekdays.
However, drivers will have to register with TfL’s AutoPay system to qualify for off-peak rates, or will be charged peak rates throughout the day.
TfL said that 1.5m drivers had now signed up for AutoPay – about 200,000 more since last summer.
Mr French said he believed TfL would have to introduce a toll at the Rotherhithe tunnel – but TfL commissioner Andy Lord said last September that it had “no plans” to do so.
Mr French said: “The likelihood [is that] many of these 100,000 drivers who use the Blackwall crossing each day will look to use other crossings such as the Rotherhithe tunnel, which is currently free to cross, and the Dartford crossing, which is cheaper to use.
“It appears only a matter of time before TfL and Sadiq Khan look to introduce a toll on the Rotherhithe crossing and the congestion nightmare feels like it is only just beginning.”
A TfL spokesperson said the Silvertown tunnel would make journeys faster and more reliable, and “up to 20 minutes quicker at peak times”.
“Due to the proximity of the tunnels to each other, without the introduction of a user charge at both tunnels, there would likely be high levels of traffic and congestion which would lead to detrimental air quality impacts, as well as longer journey times,” TfL said.
“To help residents and businesses, a wide range of concessions and discounts will be available, including a 50 per cent discount which would be available for low-income residents in surrounding areas.
“The Rotherhithe tunnel and Woolwich ferry will also still allow drivers to cross the river in east London without paying a user charge and buses using both crossings will be free for at least the first year.”