By Docklands To The Olympics – And Westfield

The steadily expanding Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in east London has added more route mileage to its network, with the opening of the link from Canning Town via West Ham and Stratford to Stratford International, where the terminus is adjacent to the station on High Speed 1, the link from London’s St Pancras station to the Channel Tunnel.

This new part of the DLR was up and running yesterday, using a new platform at Canning Town which is adjacent to the Jubilee Line platforms and below the existing DLR ones.

The base service runs to and from the ExCeL centre and Beckton, with additional trains to London City Airport and Woolwich Arsenal at peak times. A revised DLR network diagram has been issued to show the additions.

After traversing the route previously used by the Overground service as far as Stratford, the new line winds its way through the 2012 building site before trains arrive at the new terminus, which is just below street level.

At Stratford International, the DLR station has as its backdrop the Athletes’ Village for the 2012 Olympics, much of which is now completed.

But the main draw for passengers, certainly in the longer term, is likely to be this large Westfield centre, which opens to the public on Tuesday 13th September.

Plenty of extra staff were in evidence to help punters and give out leaflets and advice yesterday. One more piece in the Olympic jigsaw drops into place in good time.