London Paddington railway station in the context of "Birmingham Snow Hill to Wolverhampton Low Level Line"

Reading railway station is a major transport hub in the town of Reading in Berkshire, England, it is 36 miles (58 km) west of London Paddington. It is sited on the northern edge of the town centre, near to the main retail and commercial areas and the River Thames. It is the busiest station in Berkshire, and the third busiest in South East England.

Reading is the ninth busiest railway station in the UK outside London and the second busiest interchange station outside London.

Shenfield railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line in the East of England, serving the suburb of Shenfield, Essex. As well as being a key interchange for medium- and long-distance services on the main line, it is also the western terminus of the Shenfield to Southend Line branch line and one of two eastern termini of the Elizabeth line. The station is 20 miles 16 chains (32.51 km) down the line from Liverpool Street; it is situated between Brentwood and either Ingatestone on the main line or Billericay on the branch line.

The station sees trains operated by Greater Anglia to main line destinations including London Liverpool Street, Chelmsford, Colchester and Ipswich; as well as branch line stations such as Southend Victoria, Southminster, Braintree, Harwich Town, Colchester Town and Clacton-on-Sea. Elizabeth line services stop at all stations westbound towards Liverpool Street, London Paddington and Heathrow Terminal 5.

First Greater Western Ltd, trading as Great Western Railway (GWR), is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that provides services in the Greater Western franchise area. It manages 198 stations. GWR operates long-distance inter-city services along the Great Western Main Line to and from the West of England and South Wales, inter-city services from London to the West Country via the Reading–Taunton line, and the Night Riviera sleeper service between London and Penzance. It provides outer-suburban services in West London; commuter services from its London terminus at London Paddington to the Thames Valley region, including parts of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, and Oxfordshire; and regional services throughout the West of England and South Wales to the South coast of England. Great Western Railway also operates the Heathrow Express service.

The company began operating in February 1996 as Great Western Trains, as part of the privatisation of British Rail. In December 1998, it became First Great Western after FirstGroup bought out its partners' shares in Great Western Holdings. In April 2006, First Great Western, First Great Western Link and Wessex Trains were combined into the new Greater Western franchise and brought under the First Great Western brand. The company adopted its current name and a new livery in September 2015 to coincide with the start of a newly extended contract that was subsequently extended to run until June 2028.