2 OCTOBER 2004, Page 79

Q. May I pass on a tip to readers who

are planning to travel from Paddington station in the near future? Locked ticket barriers are now in place which prevent all those without tickets from boarding the trains. With queues at the ticket offices snaking around the block you must add 20 minutes to your journey time to avoid the nuisance of missing the train.

M.W., Wiltshire

A. Thank you for this useful up. May I remind readers, however, that there are two ticket offices at Paddington? There is never a queue at the one near Boots.