East London too reliant on Blackwall Tunnel?

The flow of cars through the commuter artery ceased over the weekend when a people carrier caught fire 100 metres from the tunnel exit. Two people were hospitalised, and both bores closed for several hours.

The southbound section opened that evening. But northbound traffic was not allowed through, causing severe jams around the A2 on Monday morning.

While the northbound section was initially expected to be closed until Wednesday, Transport for London announced on Monday that it would re-open at 7pm that evening. The damaged road surface had to be re-laid, and the lights repaired.

A spokesman for TfL said: "We got a lot of engineers in, and they didn't leave until the job was finished. They worked above and beyond."

While drivers were saved a few days of detours, some local figures believe the incident highlights the area's over-reliance on the tunnel.

Politicians Peter Brooks and John Biggs both believe salvation would come in the form of the Thames Gateway Bridge, the scrapped Silvertown river crossing that was recently hauled from the grave in London Mayor Boris Johnson's transport strategy.

Mr Johnson has previously claimed it would "bring unacceptable impact in terms of traffic, congestion and pollution to the area", but the strategy released in October contained reference to plans for a "long-term fixed link" in much the same spot.

Cllr Brooks, the deputy leader of Greenwich Council, argued the gridlock served to "starkly underline the dangers for Londoners of relying so heavily on the Blackwall Tunnel".

He said: "We were extremely disappointed at the decision of the Mayor of London to scrap plans for the Thames Gateway crossing.

"The results of such a shortsighted decision are being felt, not just by the thousands who will have had disrupted journeys to work on Monday, but by businesses on both sides of the river that are not able to function properly."

City and East London Assembly member John Biggs said the east side of London was "held to ransom by the lack of alternatives".

He said: "This is not just bad news for travellers. It holds back investment and jobs, and reduces mobility, for the most disadvantaged side of London.

"One of the first acts of Boris Johnson was to cancel this project. While he has now partially reversed that decision there is now no realistic prospect of a crossing being started under his mayoralty. It's time for action on this issue."