The Olympic flame is still to arrive Beijing, yet with more than four years to go, London is already hard at work on the legacy of the 2012 OlympicsPhotographs for TIME by Peter Dench
Eastern Promise
On 600 acres of former industrial land adjoining Stratford in London's east end, work is underway on the 2012 Olympic Park. City planners hope the estimated $20 billion cost of hosting the Games will be dwarfed by the benefits of regenerating this part of the city.
Eyes Front
From Stratford station, the Olympic Park is not yet much of a distraction.
Out of the Blue
Behind the fence lies the hope for a great Games in 2012 and the promise of a new future for east London.
A New Destination
Stratford's existing rail station, less than a decade-old, stands in shiny contrast to the rest of the area. MostOlympic visitors will arrive at a brand new terminus being built nearby to cope with a new subway line connecting east and west London and a high-speed rail link to the Channel Tunnel and Europe beyond.
Market Forces
East London begins where the City of London ends. The tall roots that the City has planted in the capital's abandoned docks area in recent years already loom large over places like Petticoat Lane market, a centuries-old center for the garment trade.
Crossroads
The resulting mix of old and new in east London is not always pretty
Racing Ahead
South of the Olympic Park stands Canary Wharf, which was built on former London docklands in the 1990's. Here, controversially, London's eastward regeneration has seen local communities and shops replaced by a business district bristling with international finance, law and media firms.
Public Relations
Home to Britain's three tallest buildings, Canary Wharf typifies the economic advantages as well as the social pitfalls ofwholesale redevelopment: with few residents, the area has struggled to establish a human identity, though the arrival of new shops and restaurants helps.
Pot Luck
Here, a little greenery goes a long way.
Earthworks
BY 2012, the 11-mile blue fence now encircling the Olympic Park will be home to four sporting arenas, an Olympic village and a vast media center. When the games are over, venues will be repurposed for community and residential needs and much of the land sold for housing and business development
Ramping Up
2012's planners hope to create 11,000 jobs and 9,000 homes within the Olympic Park, but the regeneration could leverage as many as 50,000 jobs and 40,000 new homes in neighboring districts like Hackney Wick.
