Crucial route used by 100k Brits every day to SHUT this weekend for final work on £2.2bn project – don’t be caught out
A CRUCIAL road that carries 100,000 Brits daily is set to shut this weekend for final work on a £2.2 billion repair project.
Drivers have been warned of lengthy delays as a complex diversion is put in place.
Transport for London has announced a further closure as part of a major infrastructure project.
The Silvertown Tunnel is expected to open at some point next year and will link Greenwich with Canning Town across the Thames.
Officials hope it will slash journey times into East London by around 20 minutes.
The Greenwich side will run along the A102, which it will share with the nearby Blackwall Tunnel that turns left off the peninsula, while Silvertown will go to the right.
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This means that the work on the new tunnel will force the old one to shut down temporarily.
The southbound section of the Blackwall tunnel will be closed across much of the weekend, while the northbound segment will likely see increased congestion.
Drivers looking to cross the river into South London will be forced to head almost three miles West to the Rotherhithe Tunnel.
Extra traffic is also expected on the A13 westbound from Canning Town to Whitechapel which serves the tunnel.
That will be the only option for most, as the next bridge to the East is the Dartford Crossing, around 20 miles away.
TfL is urging drivers to allow extra time for their journeys and use public transport where possible.
HGVs and other larger motors have been asked to avoid central London and bear weight and height restrictions in mind at other crossings.
The Woolwich Ferry will also continue to operate as normal, while the 108 bus will provide a "split service" across the entire weekend.
The first closure will last from 11pm on Friday to 6am on Saturday.
There will then be regular "maintenance closures" lasting from 11.59pm on Saturday to 7am on Sunday.
It comes after it was announced that a major motorway would also shut down this month, sparking travel chaos.