Take a look at the River Thames in East London now and you would think
that it is commercially dead. Where once the banks of the river were
lined with riverside wharves, these have been replaced by or converted
to luxury apartments. The mighty London Docks, including the 'Royals',
once the largest expanse of enclosed dockland in the world, had all
closed by 1983 and have since been redeveloped as Docklands, with a
financial centre, London City Airport, the University of East London,
houses, shopping and other amenities. But the commercial life of the
river didn't die - it just moved downriver. Tilbury Docks were adapted
to handle the new pattern of container ships and Roll-on, Roll-off
ferries. New terminals were built with easy access to the M25 and
Dartford Tunnel (and later the Queen Elizabeth II bridge). However, some
ships still come up to London and Tower Bridge is still raised at times
for visiting cruise ships and warships on courtesy visits. At Woolwich,
fast commuter ferries to London cross paths with the traditional
Woolwich Free Ferry, while a passenger ferry still links Gravesend with
Tilbury. Heritage craft, including the traditional Thames barges, can
still be seen at times on the river. This book features passenger craft
such as cruise ships, ferries and heritage shipping that have worked on
the Thames since 2000, and is a companion volume to the author's book on
cargo shipping.
