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Yesterday, as avid followers of the Twitter feed will be aware, I spent rather a long time on a train. There’s nothing unusual about that in itself, although the specific situation was quite notable to an anorak like me. As so many have asked me what on earth I was doing (in a tone of voice that suggests urgent hospitalisation should follow), I shall explain. You only have yourselves to blame…

The Docklands Light Railway is soon to open a new three-mile extension from Canning Town to Stratford International, part of the transport infrastructure that will convey millions of sports enthusiasts to the Olympic Park next summer. (But don’t worry, this blog isn’t really about that kind of exercise.) Before it is allowed to start carrying fare-paying passengers, it is obliged to run test trains and work out its procedures for handling various emergency situations. The opportunity is also taken to work out effective responses with the emergency services and voluntary agencies like the Red Cross, St John Ambulance and The Salvation Army, all of whom may also be called in to help in particular circumstances. I heard on the anorak grapevine that volunteers were required to help with this, and was intrigued.

So at 9 o’clock yesterday morning, I was boarding a shuttle bus at Stratford Regional station having checked-in with the DLR officials (along with 68 other participants). The bus is currently the only way to transfer between the two Stratford stations, as the surrounding land is still very much a building site – not just with Olympic paraphernalia but a huge Westfield shopping centre that is due to open next month.

The Olympic stadium taking shape

We’d been told very little about what to expect, which is normal for these kind of events. The aim is for passengers to behave as they normally would – surprised, startled, even a little panicked. We were quickly ushered into the concrete environs of the new Stratford International DLR station, which is just over the road from the mainline station. The first ‘challenge’ was that the escalators weren’t working, so the lifts were put in to frontline service.

Stratford International DLR station, waiting for 'disaster' to befall

Very shortly afterwards, a DLR train rolled in to platform 1 – with a veritable phalanx of high visibility jacket-clad DLR staff on board – and we were invited to get on and make ourselves comfortable. I found myself a prime spot at the front of the train, naturally. The safety officer overseeing proceedings walked through to outline a few dos and don’ts (‘follow all instructions given by staff’, ‘don’t touch the live rail’, that kind of thing). And then we waited.

DLR test train arriving at Stratford International platform 1

An eerily quiet Stratford International station

For reasons that never became entirely clear, it was a good hour before the first scenario of the day was acted out. Eventually, the cheery Passenger Service Agent who had evidently drawn the short straw gave the usual DLR announcement about ‘a good service operating on all lines’ and closed the doors. Then, without having actually gone anywhere, we ‘arrived’ at Stratford International, ‘where this train terminates – all change please’. So we did. It became apparent that some ‘passengers’ had been asked to leave the train prior to this, so that they could act out the roles of people waiting on the platform to join the train for its return journey to Canning Town. After a bit of getting on and off the train, someone spotted a ‘suspicious package’ and brought it to the attention of the staff. At which point, those on the train were asked to leave immediately and those on the platform were asked to evacuate.

We mooched up to ground level to see what was going to happen next. A British Transport Police officer had already made his way over from the mainline station (where presumably he had an office), and it didn’t take long for BTP’s ‘suspicious package’ team to arrive with their ‘is it a bomb or is it a packed lunch’ analysis gear. As they were prodding, poking and otherwise examining the package, we were corralled by the DLR staff and police so that anyone who might have seen anything could be questioned. For ‘safety reasons’ we were led over to the concourse of the mainline station with the promise of ‘replacement bus services’ which were being ‘arranged’. 45 minutes later, we were led back in to the station and asked to reboard the train.

British Transport Police get their 'is it a bomb?' equipment ready

Lunch followed, which was a somewhat surreal experience aboard a DLR train. However, the provided packages (which were not in any way suspicious) compared favourably to that fabled lunch on the really-should-know-better East Coast. A tasty tuna sandwich, generously-proportioned bag of cheese and onion crisps, Time Out chocolate bar, orange and surprisingly chilled bottle of water hit the spot nicely. During the break, we also had the opportunity to explore the usually out-of-bounds staff mess room at Stratford International.

Exercise 2 followed at about 12:30, which this time did involve the train moving. Usually DLR trains are computer-controlled, but for this scenario, Alan the Passenger Service Agent had had to assume the driving controls. As we entered the tunnel connecting Stratford International with Stratford Regional, the official in charge of the exercise told the driver that he should act as if he had just seen smoke in the tunnel ahead.

The ever-chirpy Alan takes the controls

The entrance to the half-mile long tunnel between Stratford's International and Regional stations

The train was duly brought to a halt, and a considerable amount of (quite enlightening) conversation took place between the PSA and the control room. Before long, it was decided that the London Fire Brigade would have to investigate, and that the power to the live rails would therefore have to be switched off. It was anticipated that the train would be left with auxiliary power, but as the supply was cut they found out the hard way that ALL the train’s lighting was rendered inoperable. It also cut the PA system, so Alan had to walk through the train with a torch to explain what was happening.

DLR train 'stranded' in the tunnel with no power

When he returned, he decided that the passengers in the front of the train (and therefore nearest the ‘smoke’) should move back to avoid unnecessary inhalation of the fumes. He then co-ordinated the process of applying circuit breakers to the tracks in the vicinity, to prevent any danger from the power inadvertently being switched back on. Once the area was made safe, the evacuation of the train proceeded with us all being counted and then walked – a carriage at a time – back along the trackside path towards the emergency staircase to ground level. We duly trudged up the steps and emerged in the middle of a construction site, much to the surprise of some workers who hastily erected some more fencing to keep us out! During this exercise, the powers-that-be had helpfully provided Alan with a man in a wheelchair and a woman with mild hysteria to cope with. Somehow, he was still smiling at the end…

Emergency signage in the tunnel

Top of the emergency staircase, in the middle of a building site

Once we’d all been counted back, we re-boarded the train in the tunnel and waited for the circuit breakers to be removed from the track and the current switched back on. It was actually pretty hot, so we were pleased when the procedures had been completed. The excitement wasn’t quite over though, as the train had to travel back the wrong way along the line in order to restore radio communication with the signalling system.

Reboarding the 'stricken' train - the circuit breakers on the track are just visible

Back at Stratford International, we were thanked for our time (with £20 vouchers, no less) and offered the opportunity to travel the entire length of the not-yet-opened line. Clearly this was far too good an offer to pass up, so I remained in my vantage point for the first ‘public’ journey through Statford Regional and the new stations at Stratford High Street, Abbey Road and Star Lane to Canning Town. Here, several DLR staff disembarked, but we continued a short distance to use the emergency crossover just south of the station, which I suspect will be a very hard piece of track to ‘do’ in normal service. Then, a non-stop run back to Stratford International, where the train terminated in platform 2 (just for track ‘completeness’).

Canning Town station's new Stratford branch platforms

It might not be everyone’s idea of a good day out, but I really enjoyed seeing (and hearing) parts of the railway system that are normally hidden from view, and found it reassuring that the train companies do try to prepare for all eventualities.

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