Greenwich foot tunnel

mrtuk

I'll be moving office soon so will cut my commute from 15 miles to 12. However, journey will now involve going through the Greenwich foot tunnel. So, was just wondering how long using the tunnel adds to the journey. I'm thinking that although the journey is shorter it may take just as long after waiting for the lift at either end and walking through under the river? Anyone on here have any experience of using it?

glenwatt

Be warned there is a lot of refurbishment work happening at present.
The Woolwich Tunnel is closed also. Hopefully all will be finished soon.

Times are posted on the notice boards at the entrances.

I stopped using it regularly a while back as with random closures etc It became a bit to unreliable with my shift patterns. The only alternative on some nights was a cycle through the Rotherhite :-(

It only takes around 5-8 mins to get through so isn't too bad.

A lot of people do cycle through it to speed things up, which can incur a fine if caught, plus the lift attendants would pick you out on CCTV and make you use the stairs :-)

mrtuk

GlenWatt wrote:

I stopped using it regularly a while back as with random closures etc It became a bit to unreliable with my shift patterns. The only alternative on some nights was a cycle through the Rotherhite :-(

So does the tunnel close? or do they just stop operating the lifts?

Also, when you say random closures - is this peak times, or just early/late? I'd be annoyed if i was planning to use it and found it closed because as you say would need to then find an alternative like rotherhithe (or tower bridge !).

GlenWatt wrote:

A lot of people do cycle through it to speed things up, which can incur a fine if caught, plus the lift attendants would pick you out on CCTV and make you use the stairs :-)

I've heard about the lift guards ... do you think they regularly force cyclists to use the stairs? or do you think it's a risk worth taking? (e.g. if they made me use the stairs 1 time in every 10 it might be worth the risk, but if they caught you every other time prob not worth it).

Wasn't aware you could be fined though !! that would be a pain!

glenwatt

Here is the link for Tunnel Info it includes a link to a twitter update feed.

http://www.greenwich.gov.uk/Greenwich/T ... unnels.htm

Not sure how often fines are dished out, I missed it by one day a while back.

Who knows if the refurb will bring any changes.

Butterd2

I stopped using the tunnel because the stairs were shut for the refurb meaning I had to use the lift. The stairs were a good workout and much quicker than using the lift. If you use the stairs and "scoot" through the tunnel is it pretty quick.

spark303

If you're travelling with the flow of commuters (South to North in the morning and vice versa in the evening), there can sometimes be fairly long queues for the lifts. I travel the other way and have never had to wait for a lift.

However, the lifts on both sides of the river have been completely out of action since February becasue of the refurb, meaning that you had to use the stairs on both side. Not sure if that has now changed - it's not clear from the Greenwich website. But I've stopped using the foot tunnel as a result. Walking up and down the spiral stairs with a bike is a right pain - especially if you're going in the opposite direction to everyone else.

glenwatt

I used the tunnel today, mainly due to the forced closure of the Woolwich Ferry this morning due to a fault.

I have to say I was very underwhelmed by the progress on the refurb work, hopefully it will all come good in the end but it currently looks like the would be more than happy if it were to just flood and force it's closure. Any ideas when it's due to be finished ?