London River Services
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

London River Services Limited is a division of Transport for London (TfL), which manages passenger transport—leisure-oriented tourist services and commuter services—on the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
in London. It does not own or operate any boats itself (except for the Woolwich Ferry), but
license A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
s the services of operators. River service had been a common means of transport in London for centuries, but died off in the early 1900s, as transportation was enhanced (and river traffic somewhat blocked) with a proliferation of bridges and tunnels. With these numerous north–south crossings of the Thames, which is generally no more than 300m wide as it runs through central London, the revival of river boat services in London therefore mostly travel east or west along the Thames rather than across it; the only major cross-river ferry services are to be found further downstream where the river is wider, and there are far fewer bridge/tunnel crossings. The decision to revive London's river service network moved forward in 1997 with the launch of "Thames", a £21-million project (£ million today) to regenerate the River Thames and create new passenger transport services on the Thames. While the service is not as extensive as those of
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
or
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, it has been growing: in 2007, more than 700,000 commuters travelled by river on
Thames Clippers Thames Clippers (since July 2020 branded as Uber Boat by Thames Clippers for sponsorship purposes with Uber) is a London River Services, river bus service on the River Thames, Thames in London, England. The company operates both commuter servi ...
services, one of the
operators Operator may refer to: Mathematics * A symbol indicating a mathematical operation * Logical operator or logical connective in mathematical logic * Operator (mathematics), mapping that acts on elements of a space to produce elements of another sp ...
on the system; in 2013 the Thames Clippers service had grown to 3.3 million, as it had become more integrated into the tube and bus ticketing network; in 2014 their figure was 3.8 million; in 2015 it was forecasted that their ridership would increase to 4.3 million by 2016, supported by the addition of new Clipper boats. By 2018, there were 21 different operators carrying daily commuter, leisure, charter, or sightseeing passengers to various combinations of the 33 piers on the system.


History

Before the construction of London's bridges and the
Underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground ...
, the River Thames had served as a major thoroughfare for centuries. Attempts to regulate the transport of passengers and goods began in 1197, when
King Richard I Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overl ...
sold the Crown's rights over the Thames to the
City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the municipal governing body of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United King ...
, which then attempted to license boats on the river. In 1510
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
granted a licence to
watermen A waterman is a river worker who transfers passengers across and along city centre rivers and estuaries in the United Kingdom and its colonies. Most notable are those on the River Thames and River Medway in England, but other rivers such as the ...
that gave exclusive rights to carry passengers on the river, and in 1555 an Act of Parliament set up the Company of Watermen and Lightermen to control traffic on the Thames. For centuries the only bridge across the Thames was
London Bridge Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It r ...
. Crossing the river by
wherry A wherry is a type of boat that was traditionally used for carrying cargo or passengers on rivers and canals in England, and is particularly associated with the River Thames and the River Cam. They were also used on the Broadland rivers of No ...
(small wooden rowing boat) was a common mode of transport.


19th century

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 Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the Bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames and opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Ro ...
,
Margate Margate is a seaside resort, seaside town on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. The town is estimated to be 1.5 miles long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay, UK, Palm Bay and Westbrook, Kent, ...
and
Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...
via
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 ...
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 throu ...
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. 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. 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 Woolwich Steam Packet Company (later London Steamboat Company), operated between 1834 and 1888 and offered steamer services from central London to Woolwich and later to Kent, Essex and Suffolk. One of its ships, the sank after a collision nea ...
. 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.


20th century

In 1905 the
London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...
(LCC) launched its own public river transport service to complement its new
tram network A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
, acquiring piers and investing in a large fleet of 30 paddle-steamers. 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. 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. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, from 13 September 1940 to 2 November 1940, a temporary wartime river bus service was introduced, running every 20 minutes, 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, Bu ...
and Woolwich using converted pleasure cruisers provided by the
Port of London Authority The Port of London Authority (PLA) is a self-funding public trust established on 31 March 1909 in accordance with the Port of London Act 1908 to govern the Port of London. Its responsibility extends over the Tideway of the River Thames and its ...
to replace train, tram and trolleybus services which were disrupted by the bombing of the
Blitz Blitz, German for "lightning", may refer to: Military uses *Blitzkrieg, blitz campaign, or blitz, a type of military campaign *The Blitz, the German aerial campaign against Britain in the Second World War *, an Imperial German Navy light cruiser b ...
. London Transport bus inspectors and conductors issued and checked the tickets on board the boats. With the move of the
Port of London The Port of London is that part of the River Thames in England lying between Teddington Lock and the defined boundary (since 1968, a line drawn from Foulness Point in Essex via Gunfleet Old Lighthouse to Warden Point in Kent) with the North Sea ...
downstream in the 1960s, regular river transport was limited to a few sightseeing boats.


Revival of passenger services

In 1997
Secretary of State for Transport The Secretary of State for Transport, also referred to as the transport secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the policies of the Department for Transport. The incumbent i ...
John Prescott John Leslie Prescott, Baron Prescott (born 31 May 1938) is a British politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and as First Secretary of State from 2001 to 2007. A member of the Labour Party, he w ...
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. The centrepiece of these celebrations was to be the
Millennium Dome The Millennium Dome was the original name of the large dome-shaped building on the Greenwich Peninsula in South East (London sub region), South East London, England, which housed a major exhibition celebrating the beginning of the third millenn ...
, but there was also a plan to provide a longer-term legacy of public transport boat services and piers on the river. The Cross-River Partnership, a
consortium A consortium (plural: consortia) is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for ...
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 The Port of London is that part of the River Thames in England lying between Teddington Lock and the defined boundary (since 1968, a line drawn from Foulness Point in Essex via Gunfleet Old Lighthouse to Warden Point in Kent) with the North Sea ...
Authority, and commission the construction of new piers. The result was the formation in 1999 of London River Services (LRS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London.
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
Ken Livingstone Kenneth Robert Livingstone (born 17 June 1945) is an English politician who served as the Leader of the Greater London Council (GLC) from 1981 until the council was abolished in 1986, and as Mayor of London from the creation of the office i ...
'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."


21st century

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. In April 2009 the signing of a "River
Concordat A concordat is a convention between the Holy See and a sovereign state that defines the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state in matters that concern both,René Metz, ''What is Canon Law?'' (New York: Hawthorn Books, 1960 st Ed ...
" 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. London River Services is not responsible for maintaining the river itself; the
Port of London Authority The Port of London Authority (PLA) is a self-funding public trust established on 31 March 1909 in accordance with the Port of London Act 1908 to govern the Port of London. Its responsibility extends over the Tideway of the River Thames and its ...
takes care of river traffic control, security,
navigational Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...
safety (including
buoys A buoy () is a floating device that can have many purposes. It can be anchored (stationary) or allowed to drift with ocean currents. Types Navigational buoys * Race course marker buoys are used for buoy racing, the most prevalent form of yac ...
, beacons, bridge lights and channel surveys), and the
RNLI The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...
operates Thames lifeboat services.


Branding

The public presentation of London River Services is visually associated with existing TfL design standards, using identical graphic design elements to those used on London Underground publicity, signage and other elements, drawing on the design heritage of
Frank Pick Frank Pick Hon. RIBA (23 November 1878 – 7 November 1941) was a British transport administrator. After qualifying as a solicitor in 1902, he worked at the North Eastern Railway, before moving to the Underground Electric Railways Compan ...
. The London River Services brand is a sub-brand of TfL which uses the familiar Tube roundel, originally devised for London Underground and now established as the corporate branding for all TfL services. The River Services roundel is a dark blue (
Pantone Pantone LLC (stylized as PANTONE) is a limited liability company headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey. The company is best known for its Pantone Matching System (PMS), a proprietary color space used in a variety of industries, notably graphic ...
072) bar on pale blue (Pantone 299) circle. The corporate signage, stationery and literature of TfL services, including LRS, use the New Johnston typeface. LRS publishes diagrammatic river maps in the style of
Harry Beck Henry Charles Beck (4 June 190218 September 1974) was an English technical draughtsman who created the present London Underground Tube map in 1931. Beck drew the diagram after being fired at the London Metro Signal Office. Although his design ...
's iconic
Tube map The Tube map (sometimes called the London Underground map) is a schematic transport map of the lines, stations and services of the London Underground, known colloquially as "the Tube", hence the map's name. The first schematic Tube map was des ...
. Tube maps published by TfL since 2000 denote river interchange stations with a boat symbol.


Services

The service patterns advertised by TfL can vary according to season. They are divided into three main types:


River Bus commuter services

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 The Travelcard is an inter-modal travel ticket for unlimited use on the London Underground, London Overground, Elizabeth line, Docklands Light Railway, London Trams, London Buses and National Rail services in the Greater London area. Tr ...
holders. The main lines of operation are: The
catamaran A Formula 16 beachable catamaran Powered catamaran passenger ferry at Salem, Massachusetts, United States A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a multi-hulled watercraft featuring two parallel hulls of equal size. It is a geometry-stab ...
-hulled vessels have on-board coffee bars, airline-style seating, are wheelchair-accessible and have bicycle racks.


Ferry services

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 Hammerton's Ferry is a pedestrian and cycle ferry service across the River Thames in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, London, England. The ferry links the river's northern bank near Marble Hill House in Twickenham with its southern ...
and the Hampton Ferry. These services are independent of London River Services as they do not serve LRS-managed piers.


Leisure services

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 Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
Galleries or
Hampton Court Palace Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chie ...
. :* Bankside – Waterloo – Millbank (Tate to Tate) :*
Festival Pier Festival Pier is a stop for river boat services on the River Thames, London, UK. It is immediately in front of the Royal Festival Hall and National Film Theatre, and serves the South Bank complex. The pier is owned and operated by London Riv ...
– High Speed RIB Tours (Operated By Rib Tours London) :* London Eye River Cruise :* Multilingual Circular Cruise :*
Greenwich Pier Greenwich Pier is on the south bank of the River Thames in Greenwich, London. It was built in 1836 to cater for the many paddle steamers that brought visitors on day trips to Greenwich from London further up river. At the time, London's urban a ...
Sunday Evening Thames Sightseeing Cruise (Campion Launches) :* MV Balmoral and Paddle Steamer
Waverley Waverley may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Waverley'' (novel), by Sir Walter Scott ** ''Waverley'' Overture, a work by Hector Berlioz inspired by Scott's novel * Waverley Harrison, a character in the New Zealand soap opera ''Shortland Stree ...
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 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 o ...
Tower Bridge Quay Tower Bridge Quay previously St. Katharine's Pier, is a river transport pier on the River Thames, in London, UK. It is owned & operated by Woods River Cruises trading as Woods’ Silver Fleet and served by various river transport and cruise oper ...
Greenwich Pier Greenwich Pier is on the south bank of the River Thames in Greenwich, London. It was built in 1836 to cater for the many paddle steamers that brought visitors on day trips to Greenwich from London further up river. At the time, London's urban a ...
– Thames Flood Barrier (
Barrier Gardens Pier Barrier Gardens Pier is a pier on the River Thames near the Thames Barrier. It is owned and managed by the Port of London Authority (PLA) which took over the pier and adjoining Unity House from the Environment Agency The Environment Agenc ...
) (Operated by Thames River Services)


Operators

Scheduled tourist and commuter services on the river are operated by a number of private companies, including: Charter services, usually catering for large parties, are also available from these and other operators.


Piers

London River Services lists 24 piers on the River Thames in its publications, of which 8 are managed directly by LRS.


Millennium Piers

In 2000, five new piers were opened with funding from 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 ...
under its Thames 2000 project, with a grant of £7,177,000: *
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 ...
*
Blackfriars Millennium Pier Blackfriars Pier is a pier on the River Thames, in the Blackfriars area of the City of London, United Kingdom. It is served by boats operating under licence from London River Services and is situated on the north bank of the Thames, adjacent to B ...
*
London Eye Pier The London Eye Pier is directly in front of the London Eye Ferris wheel on the South Bank of the River Thames in Central London, England. It was opened as the Waterloo Millennium Pier in 2000. It is served by various river transport and cruis ...
*
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 ...
*
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 ...
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.


List of piers

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:


Fares and ticketing

Unlike the
underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground ...
and
bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
networks, boat operators have their own separate ticketing arrangements and charge separate fares which are generally higher than corresponding journeys by tube or bus. The only exception is the
Woolwich Ferry The Woolwich Ferry is a free vehicle and pedestrian ferry across the River Thames in East London, connecting Woolwich on the south bank with North Woolwich on the north. It is licensed and financed by London River Services, the maritime arm of ...
, which is free of charge.
Oyster card The Oyster card is a payment method for public transport in London (and certain areas around it) in England, United Kingdom. A standard Oyster card is a blue credit-card-sized stored-value contactless smart card. It is promoted by Transport ...
is valid on most Thames Clipper services for single fares, offering a ten percent discount. Most boat operators offer discounts to
Travelcard The Travelcard is an inter-modal travel ticket for unlimited use on the London Underground, London Overground, Elizabeth line, Docklands Light Railway, London Trams, London Buses and National Rail services in the Greater London area. Tr ...
holders, as well as to
Freedom Pass Freedom Pass is a concessionary travel scheme, which began in 1973, to provide free travel to residents of Greater London, England, who are aged 66 and over (the age of eligibility increased progressively from 60 in 2010 to 66 in 2020) or who ...
holders and students. Ticket sales at piers are managed independently by the operators, and tickets are sold at separate kiosks with no facility for cross-ticketing. Many piers have a line of several sales desks, each owned by a different boat firm. Single tickets can often be bought on board the boat, but this is down to individual operator arrangements. Some operators offer their own season tickets and carnets of single tickets. Thames Clipper, for example, offer a one-day Roamer ticket which allows multiple journeys within off-peak hours.


See also

*
Crossrail Crossrail is a railway construction project mainly in central London. Its aim is to provide a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system crossing the capital from suburbs on the west to east, by connecting two major railway ...
* Cycling in London *
Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated light metro system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London, England and provides a direct connection between London's two major financial districts, Canary Wharf and the City of Londo ...
*
East London Transit East London Transit (ELT) is a part-segregated bus rapid transit, operated as part of the London Buses network. The East London Transit opened in phases between 2010 and 2013. The scheme for this system was developed by Transport for London ...
*
London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a ...
*
Tramlink London Trams, previously Tramlink and Croydon Tramlink, is a light rail tram system serving Croydon and surrounding areas in South London, England. It began operation in 2000, the first tram system in the London region since 1952. It is manage ...
* Transport on the Regent's Canal


References


External links


London River Services Website

Map of River Services

Collection of Google Earth locations of London River Services Piers
(Requires
Google Earth Google Earth is a computer program that renders a 3D computer graphics, 3D representation of Earth based primarily on satellite imagery. The program maps the Earth by superimposition, superimposing satellite images, aerial photography, and geog ...
) from the Google Earth Community forum.
Summary of Thames steamer services
– historical information on former steamboat companies of London (Tramscape) {{Transport in London Ferry companies of England River Services Transport organisations based in London Water transport in London