Emergency drainage issue closes Woolwich foot tunnel

The Woolwich foot tunnel has been closed due to the need for “emergency drainage maintenance”.

Greenwich Council have not given a date for reopening stating “We are working to get the tunnel open as soon as possible.”

It’s the latest problem for the tunnel with a broken lift unfixed since August 2022.

Both Newham and Greenwich finally agreed to split costs but work on that issue remains incomplete. An update in November 2024 put the cost at £104,840 to both Greenwich and Newham councils.

In a welcome move, a website now shows the status of both Greenwich and Woolwich foot tunnels. Even before the latest drainage issue all four lifts at each were out of service at time of update.

Information within Woolwich foot tunnel is also poor. The information board pictured below isn’t unreadable as captured on camera. That’s how it looks in person.

Greater relevance

The tunnel has seen greater relevance in recent years as new homes have sprung up either side of the Thames. In recent days I was down to take photos of new blocks in Woolwich (a post was put online earlier today about that).

On the north bank work has resumed on housing after a contractor went under holding up completion. Another block recently completed while hundreds more homes have been approved on part of the old North Woolwich station.

Residents on that side can access the Elizabeth line and Woolwich amenities via the tunnel while for those south of the river it provides a link to Superloop route SL2 offering links to the Beckton DLR branch, Shenfield Elizabeth line branch, c2c trains, London Overground, the Central line and Victoria line.

Yet whilst the tunnel has seen more relevance recently than it has for decades, usability has sadly been poor with the latest issue compounding long-standing issues.