Devons Road is a Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station located in Bromley-by-Bow. The station takes its name from Devons Road and is between Langdon Park and Bow Church stations. It is on the Stratford–Poplar branch of the DLR, with services continuing on to Canary Wharf and Lewisham. The station opened with the DLR system on 31 August 1987 and is a rare example of the preserved distinctive architectural design of the first stations. It is in London fare zone 2.

History

North London Railway

The first railway through the site of the station was the Bow–Poplar branch of the North London Railway (NLR), built in 1851 and opened on 1 January 1852. The line was opened initially for freight only. To the east were the Devons Road engine sheds and to the south was the Devons Road Goods Depot of the London and North Western Railway.

Passenger service through the site commenced on 1 August 1866. The nearest stations on the line were Bow to the north and Poplar (East India Road) to the south. Various schemes were proposed, with the final Docklands Light Railway plans mostly reusing old railway routes, including the former NLR branch to Poplar. The Stratford–Poplar service was the second line to receive legislative consent in April 1985, one year after the first Tower Gateway–Island Gardens route. In the Bow area stations were planned on the old NLR alignment at Bow Church and Devons Road. A further station was planned to the south at Langdon Park, but was not built due to lack of funding. The infill station was eventually built and opened on 9 December 2007.

Design

The station consists of two side platforms on a north–south alignment. It has retained much of the architectural design from its construction. It was built by Balfour Beatty with distinctive half-cylindrical glazed blue canopies. It is one of the few DLR stations to have its original features preserved. Two lifts provide step-free access from the platforms to the street. As part of the 2000s DLR Capacity Enhancement Project the platforms were extended to the south to enable three car trains, the original staircases were replaced and the canopies extended.

Location

The station is located on Devons Road in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The area around the station is primarily residential, with approximately 18,700 residents within 6,400 households. London Buses routes 108 and 323 serve the station.

Services

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour from Devons Road is:

  • 12 tph to
  • 12 tph to Canary Wharf

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 during the peak hours extended beyond Canary Wharf to and from .

Notes

References

  • Docklands Light Railway website – Devons Road station page