Author Topic: Availability of Oyster cards (Read 6366 times)

Vince · « **on:** 11 August, 2018, 11:53:37 am »

Mrs Wunja is traveling to that London next week and would like to get an Oyster card for getting around the city. The web site only offers the option of a card being posted, which probably wouldn't arrive in time. Is it possible to buy an Oyster card at an LT ticket office?
We don't have contactless debit cards, so are there any other options?

Ham · « **Reply #1 on:** 11 August, 2018, 12:02:35 pm »

https://www.londontoolkit.com/briefing/oystercard.htm has a good summary, basically find a manned ticket office.

Alternatively, you can get a daily ticket for as many zones as you need from any machine.

hubner · « **Reply #2 on:** 11 August, 2018, 12:03:31 pm »

Quote

Oyster cards can be purchased from a number of different outlets in the London area:

Ticket machines at London Underground stations, which accept banknotes, coins, and credit and debit cards.
London Overground & TfL (Transport for London) Rail ticket offices
Online, using the TfL website
Through the TFL app
Selected National Rail stations, some of which are also served by London Underground
Travel Information Centres
About 4,000 Oyster Ticket Stop agents (usually newsagent's shops)
By telephone sales from TfL.

hubner · « **Reply #3 on:** 11 August, 2018, 12:08:06 pm »

Quote from: Ham on 11 August, 2018, 12:02:35 pm

https://www.londontoolkit.com/briefing/oystercard.htm has a good summary, basically find a manned ticket office.

Alternatively, you can get a daily ticket for as many zones as you need from any machine.

Manned ticket offices at Underground stations have all be closed down! If you need help you need to ask the station employee and they will show you how to use the machines.

Quote

Where is best place to buy an Oyster card?

The most convenient place to buy Oyster cards for visitors are Underground stations, including Heathrow Airport. You can pay cash or credit card.

However there are no longer manned ticket offices at Underground and DLR stations, you have to buy from a ticket machine.

If you prefer a human to serve you there are also many Oyster Ticket Stops all over London in neighbourhood stores, newsagents etc that display a sign in their window.

Ham · « **Reply #4 on:** 11 August, 2018, 12:14:13 pm »

There are some, in particular where there is a rail interchange for example like Liverpool Street, Kings Cross, Paddington, Waterloo etc etc

Here's the TFL page https://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/where-to-top-up-and-buy-tickets teh other page had a lot of useful info for visiotrs, too.

Vince · « **Reply #5 on:** 11 August, 2018, 12:32:45 pm »

Thanks all. I knew this was a better place to ask than the TfL website!

Gattopardo · « **Reply #6 on:** 11 August, 2018, 12:38:55 pm »

Quote from: Vince on 11 August, 2018, 12:32:45 pm

Thanks all. I knew this was a better place to ask than the TfL website!

Is that a compliment

Cards cost a fiver, that you get back from any underground (NOT any other station station such as the DLR and old train stations) machine

Does your other half have a touch pay bank card? (I have forgotten the word) they work and charge the same as the oyster card equivalent.

Wowbagger · « **Reply #7 on:** 11 August, 2018, 01:28:39 pm »

Gattopardo is right, I believe.

An ordinary contactless card will notch up the debits, but there is a limit to the amount you spend. I think it's about £8 daily. Make sure you use the same card all the time. I understand that your card is debited by £2.40 every time you touch-in-and-out, but if you exceed the daily limit on your single card the difference is refunded to you at a later date.

NB: this is all theoretical. Although I have used contactless, I have never reached the daily limit. I normally buy 1-day travel cards fro Southend for zones 1 - 6 when I go to London and I haven't got a bike. Last Wednesday, for example, I did especially well, having my return trip from Prittlewell to Lpoo St, several underground trains and a return trip from Waterloo to Hampton Court, all for £16 on the OBRC.

This page has a lot of useful information.

https://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/contactless/what-is-capping?intcmp=20487#on-this-page-1

CAMRAMan · « **Reply #8 on:** 11 August, 2018, 01:32:03 pm »

I bought an Oyster card from a TfL machine a few weeks ago. I loaded £10 onto it, in addition to the £5 they charged for the card. It was a piece of cake, even for a provincial-type like me

hellymedic · « **Reply #9 on:** 11 August, 2018, 04:14:33 pm »

Wunja does NOT have a contactless bank card.

Many newsagent/sweetshop places are Ticket Stops and might be more convenient than a station ticket office.

You can use Street View as a quick'n'dirty way to establish if a local emporium is a Ticket Stop eg https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.6010474,-0.2677256,3a,37.5y,68.93h,88.14t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s2gZZ-7hWUW3scdfhkimZog!2e0!7i13312!8i6656.

Wowbagger · « **Reply #10 on:** 11 August, 2018, 04:16:46 pm »

If you buy individual tickets for journeys it costs about twice as much as contactless/oyster.

hellymedic · « **Reply #11 on:** 11 August, 2018, 04:31:40 pm »

Quote from: Wowbagger on 11 August, 2018, 04:16:46 pm

If you buy individual tickets for journeys it costs about twice as much as contactless/oyster.

If you can buy them at all! Buses don't take cash!

Wowbagger · « **Reply #12 on:** 11 August, 2018, 05:00:08 pm »

There are ticket machines at many tube stations.

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #13 on:** 11 August, 2018, 05:12:03 pm »

Yes, the tube still takes tickets. I wonder when they'll manage to extend the ticket-free system for the tube? The use of national rail tickets on tubes must make that very difficult.

Wowbagger · « **Reply #14 on:** 11 August, 2018, 05:15:02 pm »

They have extended the range of oyster cards as far as Shenfield. There is a stop-at-all-stations shuttle service between Shenfield and Lpoo St, run by TfL rail. It would be very good if the Oyster system were extended to Southend. There was talk of this some years ago although sadly it came to nothing. I recall the local newspaper headline "Red Ken wants to get his hands on your trains".

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #15 on:** 11 August, 2018, 05:22:41 pm »

I think Shenfield is the eastern end of Crossrail.

jiberjaber · « **Reply #16 on:** 12 August, 2018, 12:18:25 am »

Off Topic... What really fecks me off about this is that if I ride to Shenfield (17km) and it's about £4 on oyster (contactless card) to head in to London or I can spend £16 to go from my local train station (2 stop down the line, 3km from home). On the same train - Its £6.30 from Chelmsford to Shenfield grrrr.... total fare just over £10! rant over!

On topic, you can register your contactless bank card on the TFL web site and use that as an oyster card without having to top it up.

Jaded · « **Reply #17 on:** 12 August, 2018, 07:14:24 am »

As far as I know you don’t have to register your contactless card. I think the difference is that if you do they know who they are tracking.

The OP doesn’t have contactless, though.

Ham · « **Reply #18 on:** 12 August, 2018, 07:45:05 am »

Quote from: Jaded on 12 August, 2018, 07:14:24 am

As far as I know you don’t have to register your contactless card. I think the difference is that if you do they know who they are tracking.

The OP doesn’t have contactless, though.

You don't have to, but there are benefits, for example when making a claim for a wrong fare. I'm not certain if it makes it easier or possible; if you have your card registered to your TfL account (and no it isn't as an Oyster, but there's little difference) you can track back your journeys and see where the problem arose. Without registering, at the very least you have to be able to understand the individual charges to your account.

Jaded · « **Reply #19 on:** 12 August, 2018, 07:55:33 am »

I guess from a non London-centric view, it’s not an issue. It’s like any other small contactless transaction with no receipt, of which there are many, many, millions.

robgul · « **Reply #20 on:** 12 August, 2018, 07:56:31 am »

.... and if you have a Senior Railcard you can register an Oyster against it and benefit from 1/3 off the already heavily discounted Oyster fares after, I think, 0930 (and there may be a PM rush hour window too, I'm not sure on that)

Rob

Ham · « **Reply #21 on:** 12 August, 2018, 08:10:47 am »

Quote from: Jaded on 12 August, 2018, 07:55:33 am

I guess from a non London-centric view, it’s not an issue. It’s like any other small contactless transaction with no receipt, of which there are many, many, millions.

The specific travel usage thing is that sometimes, the system gets it wrong. sometimes through user error, sometimes through system error, sometimes through no real error, just circumstances. The ability to track back your journeys and the charges for each segment is very useful in that event, I don't think it is possible for an unregistered card.

Of course, as an official old fart (60+) I am a beneficiary of the Boris Bribe, and I get free transport in London, any time. Which is crazy, as I can use it to go to work, the fact that I would do anything to avoid it (even cycle! in London!) is immaterial, but hey ho.

Jaded · « **Reply #22 on:** 12 August, 2018, 08:17:35 am »

I understand that tracking. In all my time using Oyster and contactless I’ve had one occasion where there might have been an error, but wasn’t. I go to London occasionally, so I stand to lose more by having an Oyster card with money on it that I lose, or forget, or lend. I don’t really have much benefit from being able to track my tube usage, if I am going to claim on expenses it’s not big enough to warrant a receipt.

It’s the same sort of risk as being given the wrong change in a cash transaction.

hellymedic · « **Reply #23 on:** 12 August, 2018, 10:53:06 am »

[OT] They Oyster PAYG David uses is registered to me and Auto Top-Ups debit my credit card.

I ~~spy on my partner~~ track David's usage.

Kim · « **Reply #24 on:** 12 August, 2018, 02:05:07 pm »

Inspired by this thread, I've just ceased and refunded the balance on my two oyster cards. It's been a long time since I've been to London without a) a bicycle b) a national rail through ticket or c) a Travelcard that somebody else was paying for that it seemed silly to keep that money in TFL's account.

I don't think you can register a railcard against a contactless bank card yet, though? So barakta will have to keep her mollusc for the time being.