The Silvertown Tunnel which will connect Greenwich with London’s Docklands will cost Transport for London (TfL) almost £2bn over the next three decades, reports City AM.
It said although the actual construction of the Silvertown Tunnel remains at £1bn, figures from the capital’s transport operator show that the overall cost for building, maintaining and operating the tunnel will be £65m a year from its scheduled opening in 2025.
Over the 25-year payment term, this adds up to £1.6bn, which rises to a total of around £2bn when interest payments are included, said the report.
The overall cost is around three times higher than was initially anticipated, with the tunnel first forecast to come in at around £600m.
In a statement, Transport for London said that the additional costs were not linked to the construction of the project, which remains at £1bn.
“All payments towards the Silvertown Tunnel will be funded from a road user charge which will cover both the Blackwall and Silvertown Tunnel and will only begin once it is available for use, with payments linked to the performance of the contractor on key criteria such as availability.
“These charges will not only repay the construction costs, but will also cover the ongoing operational costs for the tunnel for 25 years as well as any maintenance and asset renewal required”, it said.
