The London Eye Pier is directly in front of the London Eye

Ferris wheel A Ferris wheel (also called a Giant Wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondolas, capsule ...

on the South Bank of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

in Central London,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It was opened as the Waterloo Millennium Pier in 2000. It is served by various river transport and cruise operators. It should not be confused with the former Waterloo Police Pier, on the opposite side of the river on

Victoria Embankment Victoria Embankment is part of the Thames Embankment, a road and river-walk along the north bank of the River Thames in London. It runs from the Palace of Westminster to Blackfriars Bridge in the City of London, and acts as a major thoroughfare ...

next to

Waterloo Bridge Waterloo Bridge () is a road and foot traffic bridge crossing the River Thames in London, between Blackfriars Bridge and Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges. Its name commemorates the victory of the British, Dutch and Prussians at t ...

, which has since been renamed the

Tower Lifeboat Station The Tower Lifeboat Station is a lifeboat station on the River Thames in London, UK, operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). It is located at Victoria Embankment on the North Bank of the Thames, next to Waterloo Bridge. The ...

and has been the base for the RNLI's Thames

lifeboat Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen ...

service since 2006.

Construction

The pier was designed by Beckett Rankine and Marks Barfield Architects and built by

Tilbury Douglas Tilbury Douglas is a British construction business based in Reading, Berkshire. The company was originally founded in 1884 as the London and Tilbury Lighterage Company Limited, and retained the Tilbury name until 2001. From 1991 it was known a ...

, principally to act as a collision protection system for the London Eye. It was one of five new piers opened in 2000 on the Thames funded by the

Millennium Commission The Millennium Commission, a United Kingdom public body, was set up to celebrate the turn of the millennium. It used funding raised through the UK National Lottery to assist communities in marking the close of the second millennium and celebra ...

as part of the Thames 2000 project (the others being Blackfriars Millennium Pier,

Millbank Millennium Pier Millbank Pier is a pier on the west bank of the River Thames, in London, United Kingdom. It is served by boats operating under licence from London River Services and is situated between Lambeth Bridge and Vauxhall Bridge on Millbank. It is acces ...

Tower Millennium Pier Tower Millennium Pier is a pier on the River Thames, in Tower Hill, London, England. It is operated by London River Services and served by various river transport and cruise operators. The pier is close to Tower Bridge and is situated immediatel ...

, and

Westminster Millennium Pier Westminster Millennium Pier is a pier on the River Thames, in the City of Westminster in London, UK. It is operated by London River Services and served by various river transport and cruise operators. It is located next to Westminster Bridge ...

), as part of an integrated transport and regeneration strategy for the Thames led by London's Cross River Partnership.

Services

The pier is served by various services including: *Commuter boat services between

Embankment Embankment may refer to: Geology and geography * A levee, an artificial bank raised above the immediately surrounding land to redirect or prevent flooding by a river, lake or sea * Embankment (earthworks), a raised bank to carry a road, railwa ...

and

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

(

Thames Clippers Thames Clippers (since July 2020 branded as Uber Boat by Thames Clippers for sponsorship purposes with Uber) is a river bus service on the Thames in London, England. The company operates both commuter services between eastern and Central Lon ...

) *Summer leisure cruises between

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

and

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

(

City Cruises City Cruises is a cruise vessel operator in England with operations in London, Poole and York. It is a subsidiary of Hornblower Cruises. History City Cruises was incorporated in 1986. In the late 1980s the company acquired former Gosport Ferry ...

) *Speedboat tour cruises to Canary Wharf and

Thames Barrier The Thames Barrier is a retractable barrier system built to protect the floodplain of most of Greater London from exceptionally high tides and storm surges moving up from the North Sea. It has been operational since 1982. When needed, it is c ...

(

Thames Rockets The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

) Waterloo is a turnaround point for the commuter boat; upriver services call at Embankment, then Waterloo, where they begin the downriver service back towards

Bankside Bankside is an area of London, England, within the London Borough of Southwark. Bankside is located on the southern bank of the River Thames, east of Charing Cross, running from a little west of Blackfriars Bridge to just a short distance befo ...

Connections

* Waterloo Underground station and

London Waterloo station Waterloo station (), also known as London Waterloo, is a central London terminus on the National Rail network in the United Kingdom, in the Waterloo area of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is connected to a London Underground station of t ...

London Buses route RV1 London Buses route RV1 was a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between Covent Garden and Tower Gateway DLR station, Tower Gateway station, it was operated by Tower Transit until 14 June 2019, when it was perma ...

Local attractions

* London Eye *

London Aquarium The Sea Life London Aquarium is located on the ground floor of County Hall on the South Bank of the River Thames in central London, near the London Eye. It opened in March 1997 as the London Aquarium and hosts about one million visitors each ye ...

Dali Universe Dali or Dalí may refer to: Chinese history * Kingdom of Dali (937–1253 AD), centered in modern Yunnan * Kingdom of Nanzhao or Dali, Kingdom of Dali's predecessor state * Dali, Emperor Daizong of Tang's third and last regnal period (766–779) ...

Florence Nightingale Museum The Florence Nightingale Museum is located at St Thomas' Hospital, which faces the Palace of Westminster across the River Thames in South Bank, central London, England. It is open to the public five days a week, Wednesday to Sunday 10:00am u ...

* Big Ben * South Bank arts precinct File:London , Lambeth - River Thames and London Eye - geograph.org.uk - 1780223.jpg Image:Waterloo Pier 2.jpg Image:Waterloo Pier 3.jpg Image:Waterloo Pier 4.jpg

Lines

References

{{Transport in London London River Services 2000 establishments in England Buildings and structures celebrating the third millennium Transport in the London Borough of Lambeth Piers in London 2000 in London