How to avoid paying the Blackwall and Silvertown tunnel tolls

But is there a way for drivers to avoid paying the £4 peak hour charge? Here’s everything you need to know about Mayor Sadiq Khan’s latest road charges.

The Silvertown tunnel is east of the Blackwall tunnel in east London. It runs under the River Thames, connecting the North Greenwich peninsula in south London with the Silvertown area west of the Royal Docks in east London. The southern end is directly adjacent to the Blackwall tunnel, while the northern end is only about 100 yards west of the new Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

There are three “price bands”. Most times between 6pm and 10pm, car drivers will pay £1.50 per crossing. This applies seven days a week. But the charge rises to £4 for northbound journeys between 6am and 10am and southbound journeys between 4pm and 7pm on weekdays. Between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. there is no charge.

The cost is the same for the Blackwall tunnel as for the Silvertown tunnel: £1.50 at most, £4 during the two peak periods and free between 10pm and 6am.

It will cost £8 a day for drivers heading north through the Blackwall or Silvertown tunnels during the morning rush hour and south during the evening peak.

Yes – travel between 10pm and 6am. There is no overnight charge. But if you can’t sleep or get up early, the only way to avoid the toll is to take a bus through the tunnel or the DLR to and from a nearby station – this will be free for at least a year after the Silvertown Tunnel opens. More details are below.

The Dartford crossing (on the M25) costs £2.50 per crossing for motorists. Ulez is £12.50 a day while the rush hour is £15 – both for unlimited travel.

The Silvertown tunnel was built using the PFI (private finance initiative) scheme – approximately £1 billion for the construction of the tunnel and £1.2 billion for debt repayment. Transport for London needs revenue from tolls to pay its £2.2bn debt.

TfL said that if the fee is imposed only for one tunnel, then no drivers will use it – and all will continue to use other (free) crossings. This would defeat the purpose of building Silvertown, which was to reduce delays, congestion and pollution in Blackwall by effectively reducing the load.

yes already. This is very important. All motorists must register their vehicles with TfL’s Auto Pay system, which is already used for congestion charges and Ulez (ultra-low emission zones). TfL has registered around 1.3m vehicles. That means the toll is automatically charged to the driver’s debit or credit card. Drivers who fail to register for Auto Pay will be charged £4 for the duration of the top-up.

Motorists will pay £2.50 off-peak and £1.50 off-peak. A transit-sized van will pay the same as a car. Large vans will charge £6.50 peak and £2.50 off-peak. HGVs will charge £10 at peak times, and £5 off peak.

Tolls for both tunnels will be implemented from Spring 2025 when the Silvertown tunnel opens to traffic. The exact date has not been announced. The tunnel was opened slightly ahead of schedule – the expectation is not open until Summer 2025. The whole project – first envisaged in 2012 when Boris Johnson was mayor – four years late.

The Blackwall Tunnel is used by around 100,000 vehicles a day. About half of the traffic will be diverted to the Silvertown tunnel.

In a bid to lure Londoners out of their cars, journeys across the river on buses 108 or 129 – plus the new Superloop SL4 route through the Silvertown tunnel, linking Grove Park and Canary Wharf from next year – will be free for at least a year for journeys starting in Newham, Tower Hamlets or Greenwich.

Yes – for some trips. DLR trips in the immediate vicinity of the tunnel – such as between Cutty Sark and Island Gardens or Woolwich Arsenal and King George V – will be free for at least a year.

A fine of £180 will be imposed, reduced to £90 if paid within two weeks. But only one day’s penalty notice will be issued, regardless of the number of unpaid crossings.

yes already. Low-income Londoners living in 12 east or south-east London boroughs, including Newham, Tower Hamlets and Greenwich, or in the City of London, can claim a 50 per cent discount. NHS staff and patients will be able to pay the costs again. Drivers with blue badges will be exempted.

Low-income Londoners can claim a 50 per cent discount if they live in Barking & Dagenham, Bexley, Bromley, City of London, Greenwich, Hackney, Havering, Lewisham, Newham, Redbridge, Southwark, Tower Hamlets or Waltham Forest. They must receive Government benefits such as income support, jobseeker’s allowance, universal credit, pension credit, child tax credit, working tax credit, carer’s allowance or housing benefit.

Small businesses in Newham, Tower Hamlets and Greenwich can claim a £1 discount on at least a year’s worth of costs.

Black taxis, yes – and some minicabs, which are wheelchair accessible or “zero emission capable”. TfL says around 40 per cent of minicabs will be exempted.

Mr Khan said: “Residents and business owners currently face chronic congestion and pollution in the area surrounding the Blackwall tunnel. When it opens in 2025, the planned new Silvertown tunnel will help deliver faster and more reliable journeys across east London by reducing congestion and creating the journey is up to 20 minutes faster.

Not. TfL is holding an eight-week consultation. Depending on the outcome of the consultation, the proposed tolls and discounts may be modified. The TfL board, chaired by Mr Khan, will have a final decision later this year. There is also the possibility that the £4 peak toll will rise from time to time in line with the rate of inflation, in order to maintain its deterrent effect.