Docklands Light Railway

**Docklands Light Railway** (commonly known as DLR to TFL and Londoners) is a rail company operating in Greater London and operates lines under contract to Transport for London. It was founded in 1987 as two branches to Tower Gateway and Stratford to Island Gardens were the first to open on the network of London's driverless railway.

As of today, there are seven branches: to Lewisham in the south, Stratford and Stratford International in the north, Beckton and Woolwich Arsenal in the east, and Central London in the west, splitting to Bank and Tower Gateway. Although the layout allows many different routes, the five following are operated in normal service.

## History

The initial system comprised two routes, from Tower Gateway and Stratford to Island Gardens. It was mainly elevated on disused railway viaducts or new concrete viaducts, and adopted disused surface railway formations between Poplar and Stratford. The trains were fully automated, controlled by computer, and had no driver; a Passenger Service Agent (PSA) on each train, originally referred to as a "Train Captain", was responsible for patrolling the train, checking tickets, making announcements and controlling the doors. PSAs could take control of the train in circumstances including equipment failure and emergencies. A total of eleven EMUs supplied by Linke-Hofmann-Busche comprised the first generation of the Docklands Light Railway rolling stock.

The initial system had a relatively low capacity, but the Docklands area very quickly developed into a major financial centre and employment zone, increasing traffic. In particular Tower Gateway, at the edge of the City of London, attracted criticism for its poor connections, as it did not connect directly with the nearby Tower Hill Underground station or Fenchurch Street railway station. The criticism arose partly because the system usage was higher than expected. Plans were developed, before the system opened, to extend it to Bank in the west and Beckton in the east. Stations and trains were extended to two-unit length, and the system was expanded into the heart of the City of London to Bank through a tunnel, which opened in 1991. This extension left Tower Gateway on a stub. The original trains were not suitable for use underground due to a lack of fire-proofing. They were operated for a time on the above-ground sections only, and were later sold.

A route from Poplar via Canning Town and the north side of the Royal Docks complex was chosen, and opened in 1994.

The Lewisham extension opened on 3 December 1999. It left the Island Gardens route south of the Crossharbour turn-back sidings, and dropped gently to Mudchute, where a street-level station replaced the high-level one on the former London & Blackwall Railway viaduct.

On 2 December 2005, an eastward branch along the approximate route of the former Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway on the southern side of the Royal Dockscomplex opened from Canning Town to King George V via London City Airport.

A further extension from King George V to Woolwich Arsenal opened on 10 January 2009, providing interchange with the North Kent main line, close to the planned future stop on the Crossrail line to Abbey Wood via West India and Royal Docks.

A line was opened from Canning Town to Stratford and Stratford International railway station along the former North London Line of the national railway system, with additional stations. It parallels the London Underground Jubilee line for much of its length. A substantial multi-level flying junction was built south of Canning Town to enable trains from Bank/Poplar and Stratford International to operate to either of the eastern termini at Beckton and Woolwich Arsenal. There are through trains between all these points, with different patterns at different times of the day. The extension suffered some delay in opening, being completed in August 2011. It provides a direct link between two of the major Olympics locations: the Stadium and Park at Stratford and the ExCeL adjacent to Custom House on the Beckton line.