First look at unusual branding for the new £2m Silvertown tunnel bike bus

The latest addition to London’s bus fleet has been unveiled – and it’s not red. The £2m Silvertown tunnel bike bus will feature a silver and blue livery to distinguish it from the rest of the capital’s 8,500-strong bus fleet. This is because the shuttle service can only be used by people with a bike – and not by “foot” passengers.

It will start running on April 7, when the Silvertown tunnel opens, and will be free to use for at least a year. The shuttle – which will run every 12 minutes – has been commissioned by Transport for London at a cost of almost £2m to address complaints that the new tunnel cannot be used by cyclists.

Instead, cyclists will be able to load their bikes onto the bus and be driven through the tunnel, which links North Greenwich with Canning Town and the Royal Docks. The bike bus will run between two stops, one on each side of the river - one on Millennium Way in North Greenwich and the other on Seagull Lane, adjacent to Royal Victoria DLR station, on the north side of the river.

TfL said the bike bus would “carry a variety of standard and non-standard cycles” but was unable to reveal its internal layout, saying this was still being “refined by engineers”. The service will be operated by Stagecoach East London using a fleet of five electric single-decker buses. The buses have an access ramp and can “kneel” at the pavement to make it easier to board.

It is understood that cargo bikes will be able to be carried on the buses. Five vehicles have been commandeered from the 323 route, which links Canning Town and Mile End via Bromley by Bow station. The 323 is now being operated using older diesel buses.

The £2.2bn road tunnel under the Thames was given the go-ahead by London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan in the hope that it would reduce pollution and delays at the adjacent Blackwall tunnel. Both tunnels will be tolled, in part to recoup the Silvertown tunnel’s construction costs and also in an attempt to control the traffic flows at each tunnel.

The decision to build the Silvertonw tunnel has been repeatedly criticised by activists. Car drivers will be required to pay a toll of up to £4 per crossing – and the same levies will also be imposed at the Blackwall tunnel, meaning it will be tolled for the first time in its 130-year history.

Lorna Murphy, director of buses at TfL, said: “We’re excited to share this first look at our innovative cycle-shuttle service which will provide important cross river connectivity for cyclists through the Silvertown Tunnel once it opens on April 7.

“The free service will help people cycling in Greenwich and Newham to cross the river safely and will also help to encourage more active travel in the area. “We are working hard to ensure that the service supports as many different cycle designs as possible and look forward to sharing more details of this innovative service once it has received final internal TfL approvals.”.

TfL says that because of the “unique nature” of the service, it will keep the bike bus under review and will “take onboard customer feedback once the service is operational to ensure it supports all users”. In a consultation ahead of the launch of the bike bus, many cyclists told TfL they would not use the service.

Almost 2,000 of London’s buses are zero emission, TfL commissioner Andy Lord told the London Assembly on Thursday. Sir Sadiq wants all London buses to be zero emission by 2030 but requires government funding to help accelerate the replacement of diesel buses.