Tideway - Responsibilities

Responsibilities

This part of the river is managed by the Port of London Authority (PLA) and is often referred to as the Port of London. The upstream limit of the PLA's authority is marked by an obelisk just short of Teddington Lock. The PLA is responsible for just one lock on the Thames - Richmond Lock.

Within London, the Thames is policed by the Thames Division, the River Police arm of London’s Metropolitan Police. Essex Police and Kent Police have responsibilities on the parts of the river downstream outside the metropolitan area. Notable criminal investigations have included the Roberto Calvi and Torso in the Thames cases. The London Fire Brigade has a fire boat on the river.

As a result of the Marchioness disaster in 1989 when 51 people died, the Government asked the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the Port of London Authority and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) to work together to set up a dedicated Search and Rescue service for the tidal River Thames. As a result, there are four lifeboat stations on the Thames based at Teddington, Chiswick Pier, Tower Pier and Gravesend.

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