TfL are asking motorists not to drive their wide cars through the Rotherhithe tunnel.

Vehicles wider than two metres, or six feet six inches, were banned from travelling through the tunnel in 2012.

Every day, up to 6,500 vehicles wider than the restrictions are thought to be going through the tunnel, which connects Limehouse in Tower Hamlets to Southwark, south of the river.

Glynn Barton, TfL’s director of network management, said: “These restrictions are in place for very important reasons.

“This tunnel is more than a century old and was not designed for these types of vehicle so vans and wider vehicles risk colliding inside it, increasing road danger and disruption in the area.

“We brought these restrictions in six years ago and we are reminding Londoners that they are there and why they are so important.”

Drivers can use Tower Bridge or the Blackwall tunnel instead, both of which are outside the congestion charge.