A £2m “bike bus” that will transport cyclists through the Silvertown tunnel will use electric buses “stolen” from another route in east London.
Ageing diesel buses have been reintroduced on the 323 bus route because its fleet of “zero emission” electric buses has been commandeered in an apparent bid to safeguard the contested eco credentials of London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan’s controversial £2.2bn road tunnel under the Thames.
Transport for London has confirmed that five battery-electric buses have been removed from the 323 route, which links Canning Town and Mile End via Bromley by Bow station, to enable them to be reconfigured and deployed to carry cyclists and their bikes through the Silvertown tunnel.
The tunnel is due to open on Monday April 7. Car drivers will be required to pay a toll of up to £4 per crossing – and the same levies will also be imposed at the Blackwall tunnel, meaning it will be tolled for the first time in its 130-year history.
Cyclists are not allowed to ride through either tunnel.
The bike bus will operate as a shuttle and carry cyclists and their bikes between dedicated “cycle stops” in North Greenwich and adjacent to the Royal Victoria DLR station on the north side of the river.
It will be operated by Stagecoach East London – the same firm that operates the 323 route for TfL.
The “bike bus” will operate five times an hour from 6.30am to 9.30pm, seven days a week.
Dominic Leggett, of the Stop Silvertown Tunnel Traffic and Pollution campaign group, said: 'The 'cycle bus' is a microcosm of the entire Silvertown scheme.
“TfL PR sell it as green; in fact, by taking electric buses from the 323 route, and adding new diesel buses there, they end up increasing pollution and CO2 emissions.
“Likewise, they claim their new tunnel reduces congestion and air pollution; in fact, their own figures show that opening Silvertown locks in more traffic, congestion, carbon emissions and air pollution for decades.”
Last week Sir Sadiq said that Londoners should be incredibly proud of the “great” Silverton tunnel, which he decided to build in a bid to ease congestion at Blackwall tunnel.
The £1.6m tender was awarded in February last year on the condition that “existing electrics” be used on the route.
The London Omnibus Traction Society first reported that route 323 had been “de-electrified” to enable its buses to be used for the bike bus service.
About 1,800 of London’s 8,500 buses are zero emission. Sir Sadiq wants all London buses to be zero emission by 2030 but requires government funding to help accelerate the replacement of diesel buses.
A TfL spokesperson said: “Electrifying London’s buses is a top priority for us and London has the largest zero emission fleet in Western Europe.
“We continue to roll out an average of 40 new zero emission buses on the network each month.
“We took the decision to move five buses over to the Silvertown cycle shuttle route for operational reasons, but we are working as soon as is feasible to get this route back to being fully electric.”
