On this day in 1897, London’s first-ever road tunnel opened under the Thames, offering a connection across the river that East London had long been missing.

Although central London had plenty of bridges across the Thames, East London was poorly served and this was increasingly a problem with the growth of London’s docks and a population seemingly never stopping. There was a railway line running through Brunel’s Thames Tunnel, but apart from the slow Woolwich Ferry, there really wasn’t much in the way of road crossings in East London. By the 1880s this was becoming a serious problem, and finally, in 1887 plans were announced for two road tunnels and a pedestrian tunnel under the Thames at Blackwall.

The initial proposal, made by Sir Joseph Bazalgette, was commissioned by the Metropolitan Board of Works, but in 1889 the London County Council (LCC) took over the project and they scaled back the plans considerably.

Incidentally, although it’s a tunnel, the project was overseen by the LCC’s Bridges Committee, which is a minor but amusing point.

Anyway, the LCC scrapped plans for three tunnels, and came up with just one tunnel, this time designed by the LCC’s own in-house engineer, Mr Alexander Binnie. Construction was carried out by S. Pearson & Sons, starting in 1892. The total cost of the tunnel and associated roads came in at around £1 million, and as the tunnel was to be free to use, the cost of building it was funded by the LCC borrowing the money as debt.

It was to be a single road tunnel, with two lanes, and two pedestrian footpaths on either side. The tunnel was due to be completed by 1895, but suffered from a number of problems during construction, including two floods, and wasn’t eventually finished until May 1897.

Although the tunnel curves under the Thames and that’s often cited to stop horses bolting when they see the daylight, the reason is more practical. The approach roads couldn’t be on directly opposite sides of the river, so two roads lead down to the river tunnel, and it passes under the Thames at an angle to minimise the distance. Hence, the corners in the tunnel are the points where the river starts.

Construction was by a combination of cut-and-cover tunnels leading down to the river on either side of the Thames that then joined up with the tunnel dug under the river. To dig the river tunnel, three huge shafts were dug down on either side of the Thames. The shafts were dug down by building the huge shaft above ground, and then digging out the soil so that it would slowly sink under its own weight down to the depth needed.

They used a Greathead tunnelling shield to dig the tunnel itself.

To stop water flooding into the tunnel as they dug under the Thames, large airlocks were installed at the end of the tunnel, and the air inside pressurised. Working in the pressurised environment was known to be dangerous for the workers, so the wages were adjusted accordingly, with higher wages for higher pressures, and unusually for the time, they also set up a pension scheme for any who were injured during construction. However, six people died during construction, and it’s a measure of how dangerous construction work was at the time that it was lauded as a good thing that only six men had died during the works.

The tunnelling shield wasn’t like a modern tunnel boring machine, as this tunnel was dug by hand. The shield contained twelve compartments, and men would stand inside them digging away at the clay by hand, with the clay then removed by rail from behind them, and once enough soil was removed, the shield could be moved forward, and an iron ring installed behind to create the tunnel.

In the centre, the tunnel comes within six feet of the bottom of the river, so the river bed was padded with tons of puddled clay to prevent the river from bursting through into the tunnel below.

The main tunnelling work was completed in October 1896, but it was to require another six months to then fit out the inside of the tunnel with the glazed tiles, roadway and electric lighting before it could be opened to the public.

Some 10,000 official guests attended the opening, which took place 125 years ago today, in the afternoon of Saturday 22nd May 1897. Having 10,000 people attend an opening of a tunnel may seem a lot to us today, but back then, this was an engineering marvel of the world and it had gained a lot of attention during construction.

To give an idea of how much public interest there was, it was reported that it took at least three hours for people arriving at Maze Hill railway station to walk to the tunnel entrance so great were the crowds that had come to see the Royal procession and the tunnel open. Some people had a better view though, as they were employed by the company that owned two large gasometers in North Greenwich and they climbed up to sit on the metal frame to get a good vantage point. Perks of the job!

Having rode in carriages from central London, the opening by the Prince of Wales was by ceremonial golden key that unlocked the northern gates to the tunnel, and the Royal party then went through in horse and carriage to the south side where large tents had been erected for the reception.

The ceremonial opening completed, the tunnel didn’t open to the general public for another month though.

That was because the tunnel, already two years late was still unfinished as work on lining the inside with tiles was still not ready. The tunnel finally opened to the public, still needing tiling and some of the pedestrian stairs were not finished, at 10am on 24th June 1897. A plaque commemorating the ceremonial opening was added a few months later.

Such was the nature of the time, that the royal opening gained tons of news coverage, but the actual opening to the public was a mere footnote in many newspapers.

When it opened, buses advertised new routes taking people to the tunnel mouth, and then it was for people to walk through the tunnel to the other side, although a few tourist buses did run through the tunnel. Some 15,000 people were walking through the tunnel in the days after it opened, and a newspaper report that it was “extensively” used by cyclists.

Although there were complaints about noise, as the tunnel was lined with granite setts (cobbles) instead of using wooden setts, the tunnel was generally considered to be a huge success.

So much so that it wasn’t long before people were wanting more tunnels.

Other road tunnels under the Thames

Just over a decade after the Blackwall tunnel opened, the Rotherhithe tunnel opened, and in 1973, the Blackwall tunnel was doubled with the opening of a new tunnel next to it. The first Dartford Tunnel opened in 1963, followed by the second in 1980.

Coming soon, the Silvertown Tunnel next to the Blackwall is expected to open in 2025, and the Lower Thames Crossing is an awaiting-planning-consent road tunnel that may open in 2028.

When the Blackwall tunnel first opened, there were two narrow footpaths on either side of the road, but these were removed in the 1960s. One side was removed entirely so that the road could be widened, and the other side was blocked off and is used to carry fire safety systems. Today, only motorists are allowed down the Blackwall tunnel, although pedestrians can walk through the Rotherhithe tunnel if you’re mad enough to try it.

Wouldn’t it be fun to close the Blackwall tunnel say one evening and let the public walk through it?

Sources

The Sketch – Wednesday 16 January 1895

The Scotsman – Monday 24 May 1897

Huddersfield Chronicle – Thursday 15 October 1896

London Evening Standard – Saturday 13 April 1895

Morning Post – Monday 24 May 1897

Tower Hamlets Independent and East End Local Advertiser – Saturday 12 December 1896

Dundee Courier – Friday 25 June 1897

Pall Mall Gazette – Wednesday 11 March 1891

Globe – Monday 05 July 1897

 

NEWSLETTER

Be the first to know what's on in London, and the latest news published on ianVisits.

You can unsubscribe at any time from my weekly emails.

Tagged with:
SUPPORT THIS WEBSITE

This website has been running now for over a decade, and while advertising revenue contributes to funding the website, it doesn't cover the costs. That is why I have set up a facility with DonorBox where you can contribute to the costs of the website and time invested in writing and research for the news articles.

It's very similar to the way The Guardian and many smaller websites are now seeking to generate an income in the face of rising costs and declining advertising.

Whether it's a one-off donation or a regular giver, every additional support goes a long way to covering the running costs of this website, and keeping you regularly topped up doses of Londony news and facts.

If you like what you read on here, then please support the website here.

Thank you

11 comments
  1. Carl Lombardelli says:

    A very well researched article. Regarding the Dartford crossing, the original tunnel opened in 1963, then the second tunnel opened in 1980. Even two tunnels were eventually insufficient for the vastly increased volume of traffic, so the Queen Elizabeth II bridge was opened in 1991 to provide the southbound crossing.

  2. Mary says:

    Glad someone is talking up the Blackwall at last. Lots of other things you ought to add in though. Greenwich Industrial History had Chris Binnie to speak last year – Alex Binnie’s great grandson and himself involved with the Tideway Tunnel. It wouldn’t hurt to say what a vast engineering achievement this was – and also – goodness, how it has lasted. Also the recent conversions to the staircases into ventilation units. Lots of other things. I guess you won’t like it if I referred to my book chapters and articles about it BUT most important it was built as a FREE crossing for east Londoners as one of the set built by the City and the MBW?/LCC – needs to be stressed again and again and again

  3. Dai says:

    I believe the top picture in the article is Rotherhithe Tunnel, North portal.

  4. Dr. George Fairbairn says:

    I’m glad you gave limited credence to the horse bolting thing. I have ridden my horse through tunnels under motorways and railways and she never showed the slightest inclination to bolt. Horses often are housed in big barns where you can see through from entrance to exit and enter with apparent equanimity. In my experience the challenge is to get a horse to go into a dark place with no visible exit.

  5. Julian says:

    When the Silvertown Tunnel is open, wouldn’t it be great if the current southbound Blackwall Tunnel could be made two-way again for local traffic. The northbound tunnel could then be repurposed as a cycle and walking route, and restored to its original condition.

  6. Kevan says:

    I’ve done the Rotherhithe on foot south to north, very unpleasant!Plus the Greenwich and Woolwich Tunnels.About two weeks ago I was able to experience the Tyne Foot Tunnel too north to south.

  7. alistair twin says:

    I learned recently that at certain times of day you can cycle through the mersey tunnels.. I’m sort of tempted, though I suspect it will be awful

  8. Paul Blakeley says:

    My grandfather used to live in a small house alongside the tunnel and used a large horse to pull vehicles out of the tunnel when the cobbles were wet, it was a ex ice delivery horse that he saved from going to the slaughter house

  9. Nic Houslip says:

    I remember my father, a Paviour by trade according to my birth certificate, telling me that in 1933 he took on a subcontract to lay all the kerbstones through the Blackwall tunnel. These were large Granite Kerbstones, and he did the job with just a labourer. He claimed that he drew £100 per week, paid his labourer £20 per week [he called him Boy] and had to pay his expenses [tool replacements, repairs sharpening etc] out of the £80 remaining, but still left him with plenty of money to take the lady who was to become my Mum, dancing at the Savoy! My older cousin corroborated this and added that as a 10 year old, he used to earn a shilling on a Saturday morning taking Dad’s tools in a barrow to the Blacksmiths for sharpening. Sadly, they are all passed on now, but I think life was much tougher then than it is today. I doubt there was much Health and Safety involvement then. If memory serves, he was living in his parents house in Fairfoot Road, Bow.

  10. Bill says:

    The second Blackwall Tunnel was not opened in 1973. I lived nearby it since the mid 60s and there were always 2 tunnels

Home >> News >> History