London 2012 blog

Last week I attended the opening of a new station from our delivery partner, Docklands Light Railway (DLR), at Langdon Park. Located between the All Saints and Devons Road stations, this £7.5 million facility will give thousands of local people in Tower Hamlets better connectivity to London’s public transport system. Just 10 minutes from Stratford Regional Station, Langdon Park will also provide spectators with a great link to the action at the Olympic Park in 2012.

Langdon Park station:



The local community helped design the station and the school next door hosted the opening ceremony. Mayors, councillors, funders and the school’s headmaster all took part in what truly seemed a prime example of successful community collaboration. A unique flagstone plaza leads from the station towards the school.

Read more of “Connecting east London”

The chance to visit the newly reopened London Transport Museum in Covent Garden powerfully reminded me just how public transport has helped shape the city of London and indeed our transport plans for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

It was the Victorians who sorted out the fundamentals. Firstly, it was the national railway network, followed by specific London transport modes, such as middle-class horse buses, working-class horse trams and underground railways.

The Edwardians then invested in the deeper level tube lines, which 100 years on, have given us a 408km-long tube network that serves 275 stations! The tube will help get the 80 per cent of Games spectators who are expected to travel by rail to the Games.

And yes, 'motor buses' have replaced 'horse buses' and also the trolleybuses, which were electric buses that were powered by two overhead wires and would have been used during the 1948 Olympic Games.

Read more of “Making new transport history”