London Paddington station

Paddington
London Paddington
The Victorian train shed at Paddington in October 2018
Paddington Location of Paddington in Central London
Location	Paddington
Local authority	City of Westminster
Managed by	Network Rail
Owner	Network Rail
Station code(s)	PAD, QQP (IATA)
DfT category	A
Number of platforms	15
Accessible	Yes[1]
Fare zone	1
OSI	Paddington Bakerloo, Circle and District lines station Paddington Circle and Hammersmith & City lines station Marylebone Lancaster Gate [2]
Cycle parking	Yes
Toilet facilities	Yes
London Underground annual entry and exit
2018	44.60 million[3]
2019	48.61 million[4]
2020	11.42 million[5]
2021	20.44 million[6]
2022	46.65 million[7]
National Rail annual entry and exit
2018–19	38.18 million[8]
– interchange	2.29 million[8]
2019–20	44.87 million[8]
– interchange	2.98 million[8]
2020–21	6.39 million[8]
– interchange	626,100[8]
2021–22	23.87 million[8]
– interchange	2.06 million[8]
2022–23	59.183 million[8]
– interchange	3.708 million[8]
Railway companies
Original company	Great Western Railway
Key dates
4 June 1838	Temporary station opened
29 May 1854	Permanent station opened
24 May 2022	Elizabeth line opened
Other information
External links	TfL station info page Departures Layout Facilities Buses
Coordinates	51°31′02″N 0°10′39″W / 51.5173°N 0.1774°W / 51.5173; -0.1774
London transport portal

Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a London railway station and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great Western Railway and its successors since 1838. Much of the main line station dates from 1854 and was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. As of the 2022–23 Office of Rail & Road Statistics, it is the second busiest station in the United Kingdom, after London Liverpool Street, with 59.2 million entries and exits.^[9]

Paddington is the London terminus of the Great Western Main Line; passenger services are primarily operated by Great Western Railway, which provides commuter and regional passenger services to west London and the Thames Valley region, as well as long-distance intercity services to South West England and South Wales. The station is also the eastern terminus for Heathrow Express and the western terminus for Elizabeth line services from Shenfield. Elizabeth line services also run through Paddington westwards to Reading, Heathrow Terminal 5, and Heathrow Terminal 4, and eastwards to Abbey Wood.^[10] Situated in fare zone 1, it has two separate tube stations providing connections to the Bakerloo, Circle, District, and Hammersmith & City lines. It is one of 11 London stations managed directly by Network Rail.

The station has been perennially popular for passengers and goods, particularly milk and parcels. Major upgrades took place in the 1870s, the 1910s and the 1960s, each trying to add additional platforms and space while trying to preserve the existing services and architecture as much as possible. Paddington was first served by London Underground trains in 1863, as the original western terminus of the Metropolitan Railway, the world's first underground railway. In the 20th century, suburban and commuter services appeared at Paddington as the urban sprawl of London moved westwards. Despite the numerous upgrades and rebuilding, plus damage sustained in particular during World War II, Brunel's original design is still recognisable.