10 years of travelling the Thames to work

By Rob Virtue on May 22, 2009 2:26 PM |

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In the early hours of the morning, 10 years ago, Sean Collins captained the first Thames Clippers service with a total of two passengers onboard.

But if he thought that was a sign of things to come, he need not have worried, as the service celebrates its anniversary today with 13 boats on the river carrying nearly three million passengers a year.

The Thames Clippers founder and managing director said: "When you look at what's been achieved in that 10 years, it's been phenomenal."

The river is in his blood. He was a tug captain on the Thames before starting the Clippers.

Before that he was in the national rowing team and his previous job on the Thames was as a crew member for the Riverbus Partnership.

Riverbus folded in the early '90s but Sean's time there was vital for starting the Clippers.

He said: "I worked on the ground and recognised some of the areas that had got it just right and areas that could be improved on."

Sean met Alan Woods and the two worked together on putting together a tender for a commuter service to the Dome, which ultimately failed.

However, when Alan heard about a 1992 Riverbus boat for sale, a plan for Thames Clippers came together.

Thanks to a bank overdraft of £15,000 the duo were able to buy the boat and get the business up and running.

Sean said: "I remember the first day vividly. The first run was very early. I had just a few passengers on board and I thought 'have we started too early?' Then we had more passengers for the second and third runs.

"By the end of the first month it was apparent it wasn't just going to be a success but that we would need a second boat."

The service continue to grow and was boosted by an investment from AEG, the operator of The O2 and now majority shareholder, in 2006.

Since then passenger numbers have gone from one million a year in 2006 to 2.8million last year, while boat numbers have grown from seven to 13.

Sean now sees the Thames Clippers becoming an integral part of London's transport infrastructure.

In November the boats will accept Oyster cards and Sean also wants more boats on the service before 2012.

Sean, 41, said: "There hasn't been another gear but top gear. The job is only half done. The potential is endless, expansion is endless and my vision is to see it linking up with the Crossrail stations at Canary Wharf and Woolwich Arsenal, which are within walking distance of a pier.

"I see us being an integral part of that."