Royal Albert DLR station is a station on the

Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated light metro system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London, England and provides a direct connection between London's two major financial districts, Canary Wharf and the City of Lo ...

(DLR) in

Beckton Beckton is a suburb in east London, England, located east of Charing Cross and part of the London Borough of Newham. Adjacent to the River Thames, the area consisted of unpopulated marshland known as the East Ham Levels in the parishes of Barki ...

in east

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. The station serves the western end of the north quay of the Royal Albert Dock, from which it takes its name. A view of the London City Airport is available. The station is located on an elevated section of the DLR's Beckton branch, between

Prince Regent A prince regent or princess regent is a prince or princess who, due to their position in the line of succession, rules a monarchy as regent in the stead of a monarch regnant, e.g., as a result of the sovereign's incapacity (minority or illness ...

and Beckton Park stations. It is in

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History

The station was opened on 28 March 1994. There was previously a station called Connaught Road on the

Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway The Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway in east London connected the Royal Docks with the Eastern Counties Railway (ECR). Authorised in 1844, it opened in 1846, and was absorbed by the ECR in 1847. The ECR amalgamated with other railwa ...

in the same area but this closed in 1940. It was originally planned that in 2010 work would start on extending the platforms at Royal Albert to handle three-car trains, which are being introduced across the DLR. The extension would have been at the east end of the station, bringing the platforms closer to Royal Docks Road, although no new access steps were planned. The platforms have not however been extended, and although metal catwalks have been installed, these are too narrow for non-emergency use and

Selective Door Operation Selective door operation (SDO), also known as selective door opening, is a mechanism employed primarily on trains (although buses with multiple doors also generally have this feature) that allows the driver or conductor/guard to open the doors of ...

is used instead. 2010 should have also seen Royal Albert served by a second DLR service. The existing route between Beckton and Tower Gateway would have been supplemented by a second service between Beckton and Stratford International via Canning Town using the new DLR tracks from Canning Town to Stratford International. However this extension was severely delayed and didn't open until 31 August 2011.

Design

During disruption, Royal Albert acts as a terminus with a shuttle between Royal Albert and Beckton. This is possible because there is a crossover to the west of the station.

Location

The station is further from the nearest houses than any other on the DLR, despite which it has a steady patronage from those living in the area of Beckton to the north. In fact the station signage is subtitled "For West Beckton". However, the access route from these houses to the station, crossing the busy Royal Albert Way on the level, is notably substandard, the only footbridge being some distance away. Following the relocation of many London Borough of Newham council staff to the Building 1000 offices adjoining the station, usage has increased substantially during office hours. The station serves the

London Regatta Centre The London Regatta Centre (now formally known as Royal Docks Watersports Centre) is a rowing and dragon boat racing centre located in the Docklands area in the East End of London. It is built at the west end on the northern quayside of the histo ...

and Royal Docks Business Park which houses

Newham Council Newham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Newham. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. The council is unusual in that its executive function is controlled by a ...

. London Buses routes

300 __NOTOC__ Year 300 ( CCC) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Valerius (or, less frequently, year 1053 ''Ab ...

and

376 __NOTOC__ Year 376 (Roman numerals, CCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valens and Augustus (or, less frequently, ...

serves the station.

Gallery

Image:Royal Albert stn eastbound.JPG, Looking east Image:Royal Albert stn westbound.JPG, Looking west Image:Royal Albert stn signage.JPG, Signage on eastbound platform

References

External links

Docklands Light Railway website – Royal Albert station page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Albert Dlr Station Docklands Light Railway stations in the London Borough of Newham Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1994 Royal Albert DLR station