Cable car plans still up in the air

The link, which will be around 50m in height, could be completed before the London Olympics, which start on July 27 2012. TfL predicts it will carry up to 2,500 passengers an hour across the river from a site close to Excel in the Royal Victoria Docks to The O2.

But a number of key issues are still up in the air. The £25million project needs to be privately funded. TfL are in discussion with a number of companies, and The Wharf understands AEG Europe, owners and operators of The O2, will be approached.

No design for the cable car has been finalised, while a lengthy planning process means building work is unlikely to start until next year.

However, cable car company Doppelmayr Seilbahnen, which spoke to The O2 about a proposed crossing to Canary Wharf in 2006 - told The Wharf it estimated the construction time of the TfL scheme would be about two years, meaning time is tight to have the project completed before the Olympics.

The cost of using the crossing is also to be decided, although TfL is determined it will fall within the Oyster Pay-As-You-Go scheme.

TfL denied it would have to foot the bill should passenger numbers not reach the levels, as yet undisclosed, needed to make the service viable.

A spokesman said: "There will be no subsidy from TfL. The cable car will be privately funded and operated, while the ticket price structure will be a matter for the operators.

"River crossings east of Tower Bridge are badly needed and this is the best option, linking two Olympic venues and providing an alternative to the Jubilee line and DLR.

"The final locations for the stations are not yet decided, but one will be close to the pedestrian squares around The O2, while the other will be on the north side of the Royal Victoria Dock, close to Royal Victoria DLR and the Excel Centre. It will also be close to the new Crossrail station at Custom House."

It's hoped building the cable car will attract more visitors to the area and help regeneration of both the Greenwich Peninsula and Royal Docks. A road crossing at Silvertown is planned, but won't be built before 2020 at the earliest, and the cable car is seen as the most affordable short-term solution.

But John Biggs, London Assembly member for City and East, called on London Mayor Boris Johnson to do more to tackle the transport issues in east London.

He said: "The cable car is a pleasant and potentially attractive 'boutique' item and may be quite a tourist attraction. It may also help people staying one side of the river and working on the other side, such as workers at the Wharf.

"In those ways it will be good for East London but it will do little to tackle the larger transport challenges for the area, which need at least one and almost certainly two road crossings. "

The proposal was welcomed by Friends of the Earth's London campaigner, Jenny Bates. She said: "A cable car is exactly the sort of forward-thinking transport solution London needs. It will improve cross-river access in the capital without generating more traffic and pollution.

"The Mayor must abandon plans for any new crossings of the Thames for vehicles - the Silvertown Link and any vehicle ferry or bridge at Gallions Reach just downstream."