Recliner wrote on 16 September 2011
12:08:41 ...
Yesterday, I took my first trip to Westfield Stratford and the DLR
extension. Here's a few observations:
[snip]

3. Walking the route of the DLR.

When the DLR extension enters Stratford station from the south (using
the former NLL platforms), it's at local ground level. But when it
leaves heading north, it appears to be in a cut and cover tunnel. Of
course, it's still at the original ground level, but Westfield bridges
over it.

What's interesting is to walk one of the open curved 'streets' in
Westfield, from M&S to the Cow pub (I think this may also be one of the
main routes for spectators walking to the Olympics site from Stratford
station). If you carry a GPS (as I did), you realise that you're walking
directly over the DLR route.

I'm not sure how you come to that conclusion, but it's entirely wrong.
The DLR tunnel curves sharply left on leaving platforms 16/17, passing
under M&S, after which it's not under the shopping centre. The line
emerges from the tunnel, facing west, just north of the Aquatics Centre.
At that point it's adjacent to the Overground NLL tracks. You can see
it at the top of the photo at
http://www.london2012.com/photos/201...ics-centre.php
, also on Google maps satellite view.

In other words, the shopping blocks are built to either side of the
line, and don't span it. I wonder if this is to ensure that fires or
problems on the line or the shopping blocks don't directly affect each
other?

See above. The curved street is nowhere near the DLR.

If you descend to car park B in the 'basement', you can work out where
the lower level of the car park flanks the line to the north.

The curved wall of the car park does indeed follow the DLR tunnel, but
the DLR is to the *south* of the car park. Have a look at
http://uk.westfield.com/stratfordcit...retailer=45219
and click on Lower Ground Floor. You can see the DLR tunnel next to the
green car park. (Confusingly, the top of the map faces north-west.)

I suspect
that if you inspected the walls carefully, you might even find
emergency/maintenance access doors to the line from the service
corridor. Similarly, there are a surprisingly large number of utility
access hatches in the 'ground' of the street above; I assume some
provide access to the DLR line beneath, as well as local utility
services (for example, for a waterless electronic 'fountain').

What surprised me about the DLR tunnel was the lavish provision for
emergency evacuations. We're familiar now with all new tunnels having a
walkway at the side, but this double track tunnel has a proper (albeit
narrow) platform on each side, with a continuous barrier at the back
(clear of the tunnel wall) that incorporates lighting, plus overhead
lighting too.

I'm wondering whether this is some sort of provision to handle
overcrowding during the Olympics, though I don't quite see how it would
work.
--
Richard J.
(to email me, swap 'uk' and 'yon' in address)