Commuters in Bexley may have an extra choice for how they make their trip to work if a new river route is successful.

MBNA Thames Clippers have been trialling a route that shuttles between Gravesend and Canary Wharf.

The trip takes about 50 minutes from Gravesend Town Pier to Canary Wharf, and Bexley Council are eager for the service to stop off along the way if it is commissioned.

A spokesman for Bexley Council said: “We would welcome a clipper type service if it offers another option for people travelling to and from the City and central London.

"We don’t own the pier and, while we understand it does not currently have the facilities to allow vessels to dock, we would hope they can be provided if the service is extended along the Thames.

“We support greater use of the river, particularly for leisure and tourism, and we await the results of this week’s trial with interest.”

The Thames Clipper can carry 220 passengers along the Thames into the capital.

The MBNA Thames Clippers are wheelchair-accessible high-speed catamarans, ranging from small 25m vessels up to much larger 38m boats with 220 seats.

The clippers are each equipped with a small café-bar with a small selection of hot, cold and alcoholic drinks, as well as snacks.

A potential docking would be in Erith, which is featured heavily in Bexley’s Growth Strategy which sets out major redevelopment plans for the north of the borough.

Connectivity to the capital is also set to be improved with the re-opening of the Abbey Wood line scheduled for next month.

The arrival of Crossrail will save 20 minutes on journeys from Abbey Wood to Canary Wharf, with a commute time of 11 minutes.

The trial for the service ended on September 14. 

Sean Collins, CEO and co-founder, MBNA Thames Clippers: “Our Gravesend trial service was a complete success. Bookings completely sold out and we have had incredibly positive feedback from passengers, many asking us when it will become a permanent extension to our current network.

“The purpose of the trial sailings was to provide us with the required information to enable us to evaluate the potential of such services for the future.

"The infrastructure and vessels required to operate such service would need to be built, as well as evaluating other potential stops for the route to support the routes viability.”