Blackwall Tunnel
One of the many crossings under the river Thames.
By 1880, even though crossings upstream of London Bridge had been freed of tolls, there was no such facilities for the two-fifths of London's population living east of London Bridge. After several unsuccessful proposals, the City Corporation succeeded in gaining approval for Tower Bridge in 1885 and the Metropolitan Board of Works won support for the Thames Tunnel (Blackwall) Act in 1887, permitting a new crossing between Blackwall and Greenwich.
This was one of the first uses of the combination of compressed air with a shield in tunnelling through a mixture of gravel and water, as envisaged in the patents of Cochrane and of Brunel.[1]
1897 The first tunnel was completed; it was designed to have sufficient space for a lane of traffic in each direction as well as pedestrians. The lead engineer was Sir Alexander Binnie, constructors S. Pearson and Son; it was dug using a pneumatic shield of the Greathead type, designed by E. W. Moir, the contractors' engineer, and was built by Easton and Anderson.
1937-8 London County Council was recommended to proceed with the duplication of the Blackwall Tunnel. The underwater portion of the new tunnel would run parallel to and about 800ft. on the downstream side of the first tunnel. Only south-bound traffic would be allowed in the new tunnel, while north-bound traffic would be confined to the old tunnel.[2] The project was put in abeyance because of the war.
1958 Preliminary work started on the second tunnel.
1967 The second tunnel was officially opened
See Also
Sources of Information
- [2] British History online