Prior to December 2005, Docklands Light Railway trains would arrive at Canning Town and would only be able to continue in a southeasterly direction towards Royal Victoria. In December 2005, however, the new King George V branch was opened.
Before the station was built the land was home to Drew Primary School; the school was over 100 years old and consisted of three floors with classrooms also on the roof. The new Drew Primary can be found just down the road.[7]
Design
The station (like many Docklands Light Railway stations) is elevated. It is also fully enclosed. There are two entrances to the station and the platforms are connected by escalators and lifts to an intermediate level with a direct link into the airport concourse. Main access to the station for local passengers and mobility impaired customers is by a lower level subway.
It has a direct covered connection with the adjacent airport terminal building. Although the station maintains the DLR philosophy of design, it makes concessions to cater for airport passengers, including a fully enclosed waiting room on the central island platform and, unusually for the DLR, a staffed ticket office. There is a crossover west of the station which allows trains from Poplar and Woolwich Arsenal to reverse here during periods of disruption.
Additional services call at the station during the peak hours, increasing the service to up to 16 tph in each direction, with up to 8 tph to Bank and Stratford International.
