Tom Anderson wrote:

On Sat, 30 Dec 2006, Tristán White wrote:

Not sure about Paddington one - I think it's possible to get from one to
the other without going to street level isn't it? but you have to walk
past some NR platforms or something.... been a while since I went down
there.

There's no behind-the-barriers interchange. You have to go through the
mainline station.

I have been told that it's also possible to get from the H&C platforms to
the concourse without going through any barriers at all, but that's
another story ...


I'm not sure I should be disseminating such information, but it's been
discussed here beforehand, and it's not going to be much help in fare
evasion given that most other LU stations are gated, so I'll continue!

The ticket barriers do not need to be traversed when exiting the H&C
platforms - one can go up the stairs from the H&C to the overbridge
then before the LU gates there's stairs down to some of the Paddington
suburban platforms (13 & 14 IIRC). From there one can walk along the
side of platform 12 (see the map - I think platform 13 is a bay
platform at the end of the platform face of platform 12) out onto the
concourse. I have seen FGW revenue staff at this end, but if you say
you're headed for the Underground they wave you through.

Note that I wasn't using this route for anything nefarious - I'm pretty
sure it is the quickest route from the Bakerloo to the H&C, if you use
the small Tube entrance/exit next to Cafe Nero and Taste.

By the by it's also possible to avoid the gates and get to the mainline
Intercity platforms (p2-5, or maybe p2-7) by using the overbridge,
though I think FGW do cover these routes with revenue control staff
some of the time as well. Just to be clear, I am not trying to
encourage ticketless travel, but merely observing the chinks in the
armour.

Paddington station map:
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/documen...Paddington.pdf