TfL starts consultation on future Thames crossings - cycling provision currently shit

As anyone who regularly has to cycle between SE and NE London will already know, the Thames crossing provision for cyclists is shit. The last really practical crossing is Tower Bridge. From there heading East you've got;

• Rotherhithe Tunnel, a narrow, polluted and overcrowded mess that many car drivers prefer to avoid. Cyclists who brave it tend to stick to the pavement (technically illegal) but more divert a few miles East or West
  
• Greenwich Foot Tunnel which despite attracting far more cyclists than pedestrians since the DLR opened stations at either end a decade ago, has recently had barriers installed at three points along its length. These are so narrow it's hard to wheel a single bike through them, let alone two in either direction.
  
• Blackwall, which you can't (legally, or sanely) ride
  
• Emirates Air Line, which costs four quid
  
• Woolwich Ferry, which runs restricted hours, and is often slower than the tunnel
  
• Woolwich Tunnel, which hasn't had working lifts in years so requires 126 steps carrying your steed, plus has barriers (but is at least usually deserted)
  
• Dartford Crossing, some 12 miles further East, where you're reliant on the whims of jobsworths in 4x4s to give you a lift, and the roads either side are horrific.
  
  

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Admittedly, the situation for cars isn't exactly ideal either: Rotherhithe and Blackwall might at least be safe by car, but they're invariably congested, and the Ferry even more so. Of course this has been a problem for years, but the NIMBYs perpetually kill [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thames_Gateway_Bridge"]any plans to fix[/ame] it. Nevertheless, the idea is back, this time in the shape of a tunnel roughly at the location of the cable car, and/or moving the Woolwich Ferry a mile East.

From a cycling perspective the latter idea is beneficial, providing as it does an extra crossing and leaving the Woolwich Foot Tunnel in place (presumably with working lifts by 2017). The new tunnel however won't be available to cyclists, effectively meaning cars get across the river for free, whilst we have to rely on the limited-hours and expensive tourist trap that is the cable car.

This is the time to make yourself heard about the generally dire provision of cycling links across the Thames.

• Providing another free crossing for cars from North Greenwich - Silvertown, but not to cycles isn't fair. Either the new tunnel should be tolled, or the cable car should be free to bikes
  
• The Greenwich Foot Tunnel is the only realistic crossing between Tower Bridge and Woolwich, and is used heavily and predominantly by cyclists. It should be made bike only during DLR hours; pedestrians could be accommodated with free DLR travel from Canary Wharf to Island Gardens. This crossing is a critical part of London's cycling infrastructure, and having barriers in it is equivalent to putting a one car width restriction across the Blackwall Tunnel - a scenario no one would tolerate.
  
• Any new Thamesmead - Silvertown crossing needs to have realistic cycling provisions, in particular not dropping cyclists onto the A1020.
  
  

GO AND COMPLAIN