Blackwall Tunnel refurbishment

Safety in the 108-year-old northbound Blackwall Tunnel will be improved during a proposed refurbishment, following completion of current southbound refurbishment

Refurbishment of the southbound tunnel has been underway since March 2002 and was due for completion in April 2004; that date has since been pushed back to June 2005, although TfL are pressing the contractor for an earlier finish date.

New features in the refurbished tunnel are variable message signs to warn of delays, advanced fire detection systems, mobile phone transmitters to assist drivers (particularly those with disabilities), cameras to automatically detect broken-down vehicles and a public address system for evacuation purposes.

The southbound tunnel is completely closed every Fri, Sat and Sun night (2100 to 0800 weekend mornings or 0600 Mondays mornings), with single lane closures on Wed and Thu nights (2100 to 0600). The 108 bus route which uses the tunnel is escorted through the tunnel until the end of service at 0100 each night.

TfL have awarded a £2.1m design contract to consultants Mott MacDonald to prepare new fire and "life safety" systems for the northbound tunnel as well as upgrades to the communication and lighting systems.

The tunnel was considered one the worst road tunnels in Europe for safety.

No current news for this project.