Colour transparency; a cruise boat on the Thames, circa 1990

View of the river Thames with a cruise boat going under Waterloo bridge. In the background is Blackfriars Bridge, with the dome of St Paul's just visible on the left. In the later decades of the 20th century, the pleasure cruise industry in London grew. The declining goods trade on the Thames meant that boat operators had to find new markets. The disappearance of industry from the riverbanks made the view of London from the Thames more attractive to visitors. In the early 1990s, the City Cruise company, owners of the boat in the picture, brought together the many private companies that operated tours on the Thames.