London River Services

Steamers on the Thames in 1841

Passenger steamboats were introduced in 1815 and the use of the river as a means of public transport increased greatly. River services ran from Gravesend, Margate and Ramsgate via Greenwich and Woolwich into central London. By the mid-1850s about 15,000 people per day travelled to work on steamboat services – twice the number of passengers on the newly emerging railways.[6] With increased congestion on the river, collisions and other accidents became correspondingly more frequent, most notably with the Princess Alice disaster at Woolwich in 1878.[7]

While the introduction of large steamboats and bridge construction had taken business from the Thames watermen, the growth of the railways took passengers away from the steamboat services and the use of the river for public transport began a steady decline. River service companies struggled financially, and in 1876 the five main boat companies merged to form the London Steamboat Company. The company ran a half-hourly service from Chelsea to Greenwich for eight years until it went bankrupt in 1884. Nevertheless, river services continued under different management into the next century. Many of the Thames paddle steamers around this time were built by the Thames Ironworks at Bow Creek.[8]

Paddle-steamer Pepys used in the 1905-1907 service

In 1905 the London County Council (LCC) launched its own public river transport service to complement its new tram network, acquiring piers and investing in a large fleet of 30 paddle-steamers.[9] Frequent services operated from Hammersmith to Greenwich. The LCC river service was not a success; in the first year it ran up debts of £30,000. It was shut down in 1907 after only two years' service.[10][11]

Numerous proposals for "river bus" services were considered throughout the 20th century, although the few that were realised were cancelled after a short time in service.[12] During World War II, from 13 September 1940 to 2 November 1940, a temporary wartime river bus service was introduced, running every 20 minutes, between Westminster and Woolwich using converted pleasure cruisers provided by the Port of London Authority to replace train, tram and trolleybus services which were disrupted by the bombing of the Blitz. London Transport bus inspectors and conductors issued and checked the tickets on board the boats.[13][14]

With the move of the Port of London downstream in the 1960s, regular river transport was limited to a few sightseeing boats.

In 1997 Secretary of State for Transport John Prescott launched Thames 2000, a £21-million project to regenerate the River Thames in time for the Millennium Celebrations and boost new passenger transport services on the Thames.[15] The centrepiece of these celebrations was to be the Millennium Dome, but there was also a plan to provide a longer-term legacy of public transport boat services and piers on the river.

River traffic around Waterloo Pier in 2008

The Cross-River Partnership, a consortium of local authorities, private sector organisations and voluntary bodies, recommended the creation of a public body to co-ordinate and promote river services. This agency, provisionally titled the Thames Piers Agency, would integrate boat services into other modes of public transport, take control of Thames piers from the Port of London Authority, and commission the construction of new piers.[16]

The result was the formation in 1999 of London River Services (LRS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London.

Mayor Ken Livingstone's Transport Strategy for London 2005 stated that: "The safe use of the Thames for passenger and freight services should be developed. Passenger services will be encouraged, particularly services that relate to its cultural and architectural excellence and tourism. Use of London's other navigable waterways for freight, consistent with their roles for leisure use and as ecosystems, will be encouraged."[17]

Greenwich Pier with TfL branding

London City Airport in the Royal Docks, next to the Thames

Today, LRS is responsible for integrating river transport with the rest of the public transport network, such as the Tube and buses. It promotes boat services under the London River Services brand, issuing timetables and river maps.

LRS is also responsible for directly managing eight piers on the river, and invested in LRS-branded signage and passenger information.

LRS supports the Thames Clipper commuter service financially and increased the peak service frequency to a boat every 15 minutes.[16] In April 2009 the signing of a "River Concordat" by London's pier owners, boat operators, borough councils and Transport for London was announced, committing the various parties to improving ticketing, piers and passenger information, and to closer integration into the transport network.[18]

London River Services is not responsible for maintaining the river itself; the Port of London Authority takes care of river traffic control, security, navigational safety (including buoys, beacons, bridge lights and channel surveys),[19] and the RNLI operates Thames lifeboat services.

A commuter boat operated by Thames Clipper on the River Thames

Numbered River Bus services (abbreviated to RB) run to a timetable through the day with more frequent services during peak rush hour times. Most services run seven days a week, although some do not operate at weekends. Many operators offer discounted fares to Travelcard holders. The main lines of operation are:

The catamaran-hulled vessels have on-board coffee bars, airline-style seating, are wheelchair-accessible and have bicycle racks.

The Woolwich vehicle & passenger ferry

In central London, the River Thames is narrow enough to allow it to be crossed by many bridges; further downstream however, the river widens and there are fewer bridge crossings. Two ferry services are still in operation:

Two other ferry services operate upstream in west London: Hammerton's Ferry and the Hampton Ferry. These services are independent of London River Services as they do not serve LRS-managed piers.

A tourist boat operated by Bateaux London Catamaran Cruisers on the River Thames

Leisure boats are aimed mainly at the tourist market; as they do not usually provide rush hour services, they are not normally suitable for commuting. Some boat companies run regular scheduled services, others may run twice daily, only on certain days of the week, or only during certain months of the year. Boats may also be chartered for private hire. Destinations are often tourist attractions such as the Tate Galleries or Hampton Court Palace.

• Bankside – Waterloo – Millbank (Tate to Tate)
• Festival Pier – High Speed RIB Tours (Operated By Rib Tours London)
• London Eye River Cruise
• Multilingual Circular Cruise
• Greenwich Pier Sunday Evening Thames Sightseeing Cruise (Campion Launches)
• MV Balmoral and Paddle Steamer Waverley Cruises from Tower Pier
• Richmond – Kingston – Hampton Court
• Tilbury/Gravesend – Greenwich
• Westminster – Kew – Richmond – Hampton Court
• Westminster – St Katharine's Hop-on, Hop-off circular service
• Westminster – Waterloo – Tower – Greenwich
• Westminster Pier – High Speed RIB Tours (Operated By Thames Jet)
• Westminster Pier – St. Katharine Pier – Greenwich Pier – Thames Flood Barrier (Barrier Gardens Pier) (Operated by Thames River Services)

Millbank Millennium Pier – architect: Steve Chilton

In 2000, five new piers were opened with funding from the Millennium Commission under its Thames 2000 project, with a grant of £7,177,000:[29]

• Tower Millennium Pier
• Blackfriars Millennium Pier
• London Eye Pier
• Westminster Millennium Pier
• Millbank Millennium Pier

The new piers were provided to improve previously neglected travel connections on the Thames and promote the river as an alternative means of public transport.[30]

Scheduled tourist and commuter services use the following piers, although no single service serves all the piers listed. The piers are listed in order going downstream:[31]

#	Pier	Services	Nearest tube/train	Destinations	Notes
1	Hampton Court Pier		Hampton Court	Hampton Court Palace	Managed by Turk Launches Ltd.
2	Kingston (Town End Pier)			Kingston upon Thames	Managed by Turk Launches Ltd. Head office at this pier
3	Kingston (Turks Pier)		Kingston	Kingston upon Thames	Managed by Turk Launches Ltd.
4	Hammertons Landing Stage		Richmond	Richmond upon Thames Ham House	Hammerton's Ferry,
5	Richmond (St. Helena Pier)		Richmond	Richmond upon Thames	Managed operated by Turk Launches Ltd.
6	Kew Pier		Kew Gardens Kew Bridge	Kew Gardens London Museum of Water & Steam	Managed by Westminster Passenger Services (Upriver) Ltd (incorporating Colliers Launches and Maynard Launches)
7	Putney Pier		Putney Bridge Putney	Fulham Putney	Managed by Livett's Launches
8	Wandsworth Riverside Quarter Pier		Wandsworth Town	Wandsworth
9	Chelsea Harbour Pier		Imperial Wharf	Chelsea Harbour, Sands End
10	Cadogan Pier			Chelsea
11	Millbank Millennium Pier		Pimlico	Tate Britain art gallery	Managed by TfL
12	St George Wharf Pier		Vauxhall Vauxhall		Managed by Consort
13	Westminster Millennium Pier		Westminster	Palace of Westminster Westminster Abbey	Managed by TfL
14	London Eye Pier (Waterloo Millennium Pier)		Waterloo Waterloo East	London Eye South Bank arts precinct	Managed by London Eye
15	Embankment Pier		Embankment Charing Cross	London Eye South Bank arts precinct Trafalgar Square	Managed by TfL
16	Festival Pier		Embankment Waterloo	London Eye South Bank arts precinct	Managed by TfL
17	Savoy Pier		Embankment Charing Cross	Savoy Hotel Covent Garden
18	Tower Lifeboat Station				Only for use by RNLI lifeboats; not open to the public.
19	Blackfriars Millennium Pier		Blackfriars	St Paul's Cathedral Tate Modern art gallery	Managed by TfL
20	Bankside Pier		Blackfriars	Globe Theatre Tate Modern art gallery	Managed by TfL
21	London Bridge City Pier		London Bridge	HMS Belfast Southwark Cathedral
22	Tower Millennium Pier		Tower Hill Tower Gateway Fenchurch Street	Tower of London Tower Bridge	Managed by TfL
23	St. Katharine Pier		Tower Hill Tower Gateway	St Katharine Docks Tower of London Tower Bridge
24	Nelson Dock Pier		–	Rotherhithe	Canary Wharf – Rotherhithe Ferry only
25	Canary Wharf Pier		Canary Wharf (DLR) Canary Wharf	Canary Wharf financial district
26	Greenland Dock Pier		Surrey Quays	Greenland Dock
27	Masthouse Terrace Pier		Island Gardens	Isle of Dogs
28	Greenwich Pier		Cutty Sark Greenwich	Greenwich Cutty Sark National Maritime Museum	Managed by TfL
29	North Greenwich Pier (QEII Pier)		North Greenwich	Millennium Dome
30	Barrier Gardens Pier		Woolwich Dockyard	Thames Barrier	Summer only
31	Royal Wharf Pier		Pontoon Dock West Silvertown (Both approximately 800m away)	Royal Wharf	Opened 2019[32][33]
32	Woolwich Pier		Woolwich Dockyard Woolwich Arsenal (both 600m approx)	Woolwich South Circular	Woolwich Ferry only
33	North Woolwich Pier		King George V	Woolwich North Circular London City Airport	Woolwich Ferry only
34	Woolwich Arsenal Pier		Woolwich Arsenal (600m approx)	Woolwich
34	Barking Riverside Pier	RB1	Barking Riverside	Barking Riverside	Planned to open late 2021[34][35]