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After a false start last October, the DLR’s new and improved trains are now back in service in east London.
The long-awaited trains were supposed to finally enter service in autumn 2025, but, after one of the three introduced in the rollout failed to stop correctly in the rain at Canning Town station, all new stock was removed from the tracks for more testing after just a month.
Now, after rigorous braking trials, the first of the DLR’s new trains reappeared on the Woolwich Arsenal to Stratford International branch on Monday September 7. There are a total of 54 trains in the new fleet, and they’re going to be rolled out gradually. Once all of them are in operation, they’ll increase capacity on the line by 50 percent. They feature air conditioning, power points for charging phones, and a walk-through design rather than having doors between carriages.
Apart from October's mishap delaying proceedings, new stock was held up by a contractor entering administration, halting the building of new sidings in Beckton. Trains had to be stored in Spain where they were built. In the meantime, DLR service has been affected by weekend and evening cuts which have tanked Transport for London's revenue, but the shiny new locomotives are now ready to go.
Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: ‘This is an exciting day for east and south London, as the first new state-of-the-art DLR train enters service.
‘These modern new trains are fantastic and will transform travel for millions of Londoners, significantly improving comfort, accessibility and reliability. The additional capacity will also support further growth, particularly in parts of the Royal Docks and the Isle of Dogs where the DLR is the most-used mode of transport, supporting new jobs and homes.’
There's just one downside to the improvements though - each new train will now feature just one of the popular forward facing transverse seats (the ones where you can pretend you're driving). Perhaps get on a stop earlier if you want to clock in for your DLR operator shift.
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