Paddington Station
The Georgian House Hotel is the perfect
place to stay if you are arriving in London and want to
have easy access to Paddington Station. The hotel is 5 minutes
walk from Victoria Station in a safe quiet area with quick
links to Paddington by bus or tube.
Location of Paddington Station
Paddington station or London Paddington is the name of
a major railway station in the Paddington area of London,
which is the London terminus for long distance trains to
the West of England and South Wales and some West London
commuter services. Stops on several lines of the London
Underground are also part of the station complex: the Hammersmith
& City Line at a surface station on the north side of the
station and parallel with it; the District Line and Circle
Line in a cutting in front of the station and perpendicular
to it, and the Bakerloo Line in deep-level tubes below the
station.
The History of Paddington Station
The first station to open in the Paddington area was a
temporary terminus for the Great Western Railway on the
west side of Bishop's Bridge Road. The first GWR services
from London to Taplow, near Maidenhead, ran from here in
1838. After the opening of the main station in 1854, this
became the site of the goods yard. After years of dereliction,
it is now being redeveloped as a mixed residential and business
area called "Paddington Central".
The main Paddington station between Bishops Bridge Road
and Praed Street was opened in 1854. It was designed by
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, though much of the architectural
detailing was by his associate Matthew Digby Wyatt. P. C.
Hardwick built the Great Western Hotel in front of it in
1868-74.
The station was substantially enlarged in 1906-15. In 1863
the Metropolitan Railway opened the first underground railway,
running from Paddington to Farringdon. Its line emerged
from the tunnels at a station (known for many years as Bishop's
Road) on the north side of the mainline station, with a
connection to the GWR mainline which allowed it to run regular
services onto the GWR's Hammersmith branch. From the 1930s
until the late 1960s the Metropolitan Line and GWR suburban
services shared a group of four platforms, but the Underground
is now entirely separate and forms Paddington station on
the Hammersmith & City Line.
In 1868 the Metropolitan Railway opened a new branch to
Kensington, with a station called Praed Street in a cutting
across that street from the mainline station. This station
is now Paddington station on the Circle and District Lines.
It is linked to the mainline station and the Bakerloo line
by a footway that passes underneath Praed Street and the
Great Western Hotel.
The deep-level Baker Street and Waterloo Railway - now the
Bakerloo Line - arrived in 1913, with platforms underneath
the mainline station.
For more information visit www.networkrailstations.co.uk.
Georgian House Hotel
is ideally situated in a very central location, so visiting
sights all over London is quick and easy. Why not book Georgian
House Hotel when you plan your trip to London? You
can book online or email to make a reservation on reception@georgianhousehotel.co.uk,
or telephone on 00 44 (0)207 834 1438.
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