On Mon, 18 Dec 2006 15:48:12 -0000, Tom Anderson
wrote:

On Mon, 18 Dec 2006, Sam wrote:

Andy wrote:
Ralf Mayer wrote:
2) Paddington: Seems to be triple. On H & C as an isolated station,
but with
the circle to allow transfers (to where). Then one circle on the
Bakerloo,
and another one on the District/Circle section. How is the setup
there, how
many different Paddingtons are there and how can one interchange from
one to
the other? Do you leave the station / ticket gates to change?

The H & C platforms are basically the length of Paddington mainline
station away from the entrance to the Circle/District and Bakerloo
station.

A related question - say you want to go from Liverpool St to
Paddington, with the intention of catching the Heathrow Express. What's
better for the change at Paddington - to get a Circle train and arrive
at the front of the station, or to wait for an H&C and come along side?

Depends on how long it is from the next circle to the next H&C. Anything
over three minutes and it's definitely not worth it.

Would also depend on whether you are already in possession of your
Heathrow Express ticket. I would say that the H&C platforms are about the
same distance from the front of a Heathrow Express as the Circle platform
is from the rear, maybe even a bit closer when you consider that you will
be arriving on the inner circle platform and need to cross over the
bridge. So, if you have a HEx ticket, the first train is the best answer.
Even if you don't have a ticket and the first train is a H&C, get on it
anyway and reassess the situation at Edgware Rd. It's not unknown for a
Wimbleware to pull out while a H&C is stopped across the platform. Add
Metropolitans into the equation for more choices as pointed out by Tom.

My advice would be to stick with rule number 1 for tube travel - Always
get on the first train. [with some exceptions]


--
Fig