I'm not going to say /too/ much here until publishing actual reports-
I'm-paid-to-write, but in response to some key things raised:

1) the only people involved significantly onsite at present are
infrastructure types from TfL infrastructure and BBCJV, not ops types
from LO and LOROL, so none of the ops questions were relevant.

2) there is quite a lot of building work still to do, particularly at
Dalston (where they still haven't finished laying the large slabs
above the platforms that will support the bus station)

3) however, everyone involved explicitly and repeatedly said that they
would difficultly-but-comfortably make the January 17 deadline for TfL
and BBCJV to hand over an operational railway to LOROL to start
running test trains on.

(*my opinion, not reporting*: I don't think they will achieve handover
any earlier than this. While many of the stations from Whitechapel
south just need fit-out and tinkering, Dalston and SHS are still
basically half-built. Whether achieving the January 17 deadline will
allow opening earlier than mid-June is another question, and my day
job is construction writing not rail operation. How long was the gap
between the advent of fully signalled, OH powered test E*s on HS1 and
its opening?)

4) the new stations appear to be sensibly futureproofed length-wise:
the 4 platforms at DJ are the same length, give or take 5ish metres,
and although the major building work still going on at the south end
of DJ made it impossible to reach the far end I'd be very surprised if
they weren't all 6-car. I've not seen the claim that the bay platforms
are 4-car made anywhere 'official' rather than blogs/fora - anyone
know otherwise? SHS is 8-car.

5) SHS will be like St Pancras Thameslink inside. At the moment there
are several bits that haven't been finished and hence let light in;
when it's done there won't be any. Near-total soundproofing is
required given the building site that (hopefully, economy willing)
will surround it.

6) Rotherhithe is going to look pretty cool at ticket hall level, with
the frontage restored and replicas of the original columns added, and
a new split-level glass roof replacing the 80s perspex over the
escalators. At platform level there's a new emergency exit to the
south of the platforms, but the only platform widening is based on
narrowing the loading gauge from Met to NR and the main access hasn't
been improved significantly (same at Wapping).

7) While I know naff-all about depots, the depot looks nearly ready
and rather impressive. It'll do up to C4 servicing, with anything that
can't be done there done in Derby (ie ELL trains won't need to leave
the ELL for routine maintenance). It will also perform some heavy
maintenance on NLL/WLL trains and so has various AC-related test
equipment for them.

I'll post links to articles & photos when they're up.

--
John Band
john at johnband dot org
www.johnband.org