Shadwell Portal to the Rotherhithe Tunnel is a Grade II listed building in the Tower Hamlets local planning authority area, England. First listed on 1 April 1983. Portal.

Shadwell Portal to the Rotherhithe Tunnel

WRENN ID
half-slate-dale
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Tower Hamlets
Constituency
Poplar and Limehouse MP: Apsana Begum (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
1 April 1983
Type
Portal
Address
Shadwell Portal to the Rotherhithe Tunnel, Butcher Row E1
OS grid reference
TQ 359 809
Coordinates
51.51076, -0.04187
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The Shadwell Portal to the Rotherhithe Tunnel, built between 1904 and 1908, was engineered by Sir Maurice Fitzmaurice, following the structural system established with the Blackwall Tunnel. The architectural design of the portal is similar to those for Blackwall, created by Thomas Blashill. It features a semi-circular arch with a roll mould, and the spandrels and parapet are faced in polished pink granite. Below the parapet is a bull-nosed string, flanked by slightly battered dies with curved pyramidal cappings. Stone stairs with granite parapets descend in two flights along the cutting retaining walls, providing pedestrian access to the tunnel footpaths. For the archway to the tunnel approach, refer to Branch Road. The Surrey shore portal is of identical design to this one.

Local climate

Shadwell Portal to the Rotherhithe Tunnel sits in one of the driest parts of the UK, with an average of 690 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 96% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 99% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 34 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 52% of listed buildings. Of these, 15 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

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