Rail disruption at London Paddington

Up to 200 projects will be delivered across Britain over this holiday period including major upgrades to the rail network as part of the Crossrail project. 

This means there will be no overground services in or out of London Paddington from the early hours of Christmas Eve to 29 December, including services to Heathrow Airport. 

Instead, trains will start and end at Ealing Broadway. There will also be a reduced timetable in place between 30 December and 2 January.

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Peak fare rises on the Heathrow Express

FARE rises have come into force on the #HeathrowExpress, the most expensive train journey per mile in the UK.

The price of a peak time single ticket on the direct service from London Paddington to the airport increases from £22 to £24, and a business class ticket from £30 to £32.

The hike is part of an attempt to ease congestion on the line by encouraging off-peak travel.

Off-peak return tickets will soon be reduced from £36 to £25.

A single fare on the Heathrow Connect, which also departs from Paddington, costs £10.20, and travelling to the airport on the Underground from central London costs £5.10 at peak times. 

Heathrow Express director Fraser Brown said that the changes would protect the ‘great service’ provided on the quickest route to Heathrow.

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Advance fares offer from Heathrow Express

HEATHROW EXPRESS has introduced a £6.99 single fare for bookings made between three and six months in advance.

The bargain ticket comes in as part of a new range of advanced purchase ticket fares, which can now be booked 24 weeks in advance – double the current booking period.

The ticket pricing structure starts with a 25% saving off the Express Saver and Business First fares for tickets booked up to seven days in advance, and then steps up to 50% off for bookings made up to 30 days in advance, and 66% for tickets booked for between 90 days and six months before travel.

#HeathrowExpress is the fastest route from central London to the airport; its non-stop service between Paddington station and Heathrow takes 15 minutes.

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£20 million make-over for Paddington Station

OVER the next 18 months Network Rail will be making significant changes to London’s #PaddingtonStation to provide passengers with new and improved facilities.

The Grade 1 listed structure is currently benefiting from a renovation of its roof and an upgrade to its lighting system above the platforms. Network Rail is now also starting a programme of work to significantly improve the appearance of the station as a whole and provide growing numbers of passengers – 61 million forecast for this year – with a wider range of places to eat, drink, and shop.

As part of the work, the area known as The Lawn, which houses retail outlets at the back of the main station building, is to be renovated. Better waiting facilities, including more seating areas, will be installed. The glazing on the station’s roof will be replaced with clear windows to let in more light, while the pillars and steelwork will be re-painted.

Natalie Holden, Network Rail’s senior commercial scheme sponsor for the project, said: ‘We’re working closely with English Heritage to preserve the heritage of this iconic building, making sure the changes we make are sensitive to the original structure and take account of its Grade 1 listed status.’

Train services will not be affected during the 18-month project, but passengers will notice changes to the lay-out of the station and to some of the retail outlets.

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Picture Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37740324@N04/3579876554">Paddington Station, London</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/">(license)

Top marks for the Heathrow Express

HEATHROW EXPRESS has received an excellent overall satisfaction rate of 94% from a poll of UK rail passengers, compared to the national average of 80% and a London & South East average of 78%.

The air-rail link, which connects London Paddington and Heathrow in 15 minutes, has consistently received overall satisfaction ratings of more than 90% for the last three years.

Of the 23 train operating companies surveyed, #HeathrowExpress came top in the following categories: comfort of seating area (95%); cleanliness both inside (96%) and out (95%); sufficient room for passengers to sit and stand (93%) and top for upkeep and repair of the train (96%). It shared a joint first for speed with Merseyrail (96%), overall satisfaction with the station with East Coast and First Hull (90%) and again with First Hull (94%) for personal security on board.

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Picture Credit: "Heathrow Express P1180327". Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons