THE coming half term break will see more runnings of the Uber Boat Clipper service from Gravesend and Tilbury to London – something that could soon become a regular service following a decision to sell the Gravesend Pier to Thames Clippers.

The boats will sail to and from Gravesend and Tilbury on Thursday 17 and Saturday 19 February. From Gravesend, the boat will take 40 minutes to reach Greenwich Peninsula (North Greenwich Pier), or 60 minutes to London Bridge (London Bridge City Pier).

Tickets can be booked via this link.

In January Gravesham Borough Council agreed to sell its pier to London Clippers. The oldest surviving cast-iron pier in the world, it was bought from its private owner by the council in 2000 when unfulfilled plans for a restaurant on the site were mooted.

The restaurant lease was forfeited in 2019, giving the council the opportunity to sell the pier.

The terms of the sale include the continued use of the pontoon by the Gravesend to Tilbury ferry service and public access to the pier.

Plans have been put forward by the improvement board for Tilbury to include an improved docking facility at Tilbury as part of the town's regeneration plans. It is further hoped a docking facility can be created in Grays at some point in the future.

In what is reported to be a consequence of the decision to run an extend service to Gravesend and Tilbury, Thames Clippers have ordered two new boats, currently being built at Wight Shipyard on the Isle of Wight.

The new boats, the first of which is set to enter service in the autumn, are a hybrid design that will allow them to operate solely on battery power while in the centre of London, and recharge while using biofuelled power outside of central London.