Search

London by tube

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 11:46 AM
  #21  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Some errors in the above...

1. You can only load a 7 day travelcard onto oyster. You cannot load 1 or 2 or 3 day travelcards onto oyster. Instead, you load funds for PAYG on oyster.

Leaving aside the 2 for 1 offers....

2. On an oyster PAYG, the fare is deducted by the ride as indicated. The amount deducted is far less than a cash fare, far less. Each tube trip on oyster within central London (zone 1) deducts £1.60.....a cash fare within zone 1 is £4...quite a difference. However, the oyster card deductions cap at 50p less than the charge for a corresponding paper 1 day travelcard. Since a 1 day off peak paper travelcard for zones 1 & 2 cost £5.60 the most you can have deducted from your oyster PAYG as long as you stick to zones 1 & 2 (central London and the immediate vicinity) is £5.10 no matter how many trips you take provided (and this is where the offpeak bit comes in) the first trip is after 0930 on a weekday...the cost for a one day paper travelcard goes up after your first trip on a weekday is before 0930 to £7.20 so the most you would have to pay with oyster PAYG on such a day is £6.70. Remember this is a cap...if you use less on a given day you pay the smaller amount. Also with oyster PAYG, each bus ride costs £1 but as long as you stick to the buses and never use the tube, the oyster PAYG would cap at £3.30.

The beauty of the system is you don't have to worry. As you go along, the tfl computer will worry about how much you are spending and will cap properly. If you go the paper travelcard route, you just use it to your heart's content within the desired zone of validity (probably zones 1 & 2).

2. A 7 day travelcard loaded onto oyster is exactly the same as a 7 day travelcard paper version you purchase at a railroad station with one significant difference and that comes to extensions. If you buy a 7 day zone 1 & 2 travelcard and wish to travel say to Heathrow, which is in zone 6, if it's on paper you're out of luck. You have to pay the full cash fare which is always £4 no matter which zones you travel through...with the 7 day travelcard on oyster, you would pay much less for the extension fare which would be loaded on the same oyster card but as a pay as you go (PAYG)...for the record the zone 3-6 extension required to go to Heathrow is either £2 peak (which is before 0930 on weekdays and between 1600 and 1900 weekdays) otherwise it's £1.10.

Everything else being equal, oyster is a far better value.

Unfortunately, everything else isn't equal. First we have the famous 2 for 1's described here which will not accept oyster cards and the other complication is some of the national railway lines, despite the fact they're technically still operating within the London zone system, do not honor oyster card PAYG nor oyster card 7 day travelcards with an extension...some do and some don't. That's where it becomes complicated.

But for travel within London underground, dlr and buses, the oyster card either 7 day version or PAYG is usually the better deal.
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:03 PM
  #22  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Ah ha terminology...

An oyster card is the size of a credit card, looks like a credit card but no magnetic strip. Rather it has a chip inside of it. to use it you touch a yellow card reacher when entering a bus or touch a yellow card reader wheen entering or leaving the tube. You can load PAYG funds or a 7 day (or longer but for tourists it's rarely more than 7 days) travelcards onto the same oyster card. Tube stations for 7 day travelcards only issue them on oyster. You tell the clerk what you want and it will be done. And one of the advantages of London travel for Americans, Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, South Africans is that most clerks understand your naitive language which is usually pretty close to English (unlike some of the restaurants where I have sometimes found waiters who don't understand many of the languages we speak).....

London tube stations also issue 1 day and 3 day paper travelcards. They are good within the zone of validity for unlimited travel. They come in two varieties (far short of Heinz of course), pean and off peak. For travelcard purposes and for travelcard purposes only, a peak period travelcard is valid for travel on a given day till 0430 the next morning...an off peak travelcard has a restriction that it is not valid for travel before 0930 on weekdays...there are peak and non peak period fares associated with the use of PAYG oyster cards but do not apply to the paper 1 and 3 day travelcards...it's either peak (all day) or non peak (all day except before 0930 on a weekday).

London railroad stations, not operated by tfl (transport for London) issue 7 day travelcards on paper stock with the national rail symbol as well as 1 and 3 day travelcards described above with the national rail symbol. I don't think, but I could be wrong, that as of now national rail stations will refil or issue an oyster card but most national rail stations in central London adjoin a tube station. These are the travelcards (paper) which are necessary for the 2 for 1's described throughout the thread.

To use a paper travelcard, 1 day or 3 day or 7 day, to enter and leave the tube you put it through a slot on the turnstile, it will give you the card back and the gates will open....to enter a bus you show it to the driver or if it's one of the bendy buses, you just get on. No need to validate it or anything like that.

I think that covers the terminology...oyster has 7 day, 1 month and 1 year travelcards loaded onto it by tfl agents and PAYG funding....paper 1 and 3 day travelcards are issued both by tfl and national rail statons only 7 day (or 1 month or 1 year but probably not appropriate for tourists) paper travelcards are issued at national rail stations.

Think that covers it. An exam tomorrow so study well tonight.
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:04 PM
  #23  
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 817
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Just got back a few days ago and the cost of a 7-day oyster travelcard zones 1-2 plus extension supplement for the trip from Heathrow to Gloucester Rd. station was 28.80. And this was at 10:50 AM on a Thursday AM. I started to question this but was too tired and jet-lagged at the time. I was expecting something closer to 27.00.
Hagan is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:31 PM
  #24  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 6
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Ahh1 I think I'm beginning to understand, the operative word being "beginning". So that is why one contributor suggested one of us getting a 7 day RAIL pass and one an Oyster PAYG. Say my son uses the 7 day pass fot the 2 4 1's ( I assume both of us need not have a 7 day paper pass)and I use the OysterPAYG. I load it with say 4 days worth of max charges ( because of the one day Paris trip, around 20 pounds) and if I don't use it all I can redeem what is left. Do I have to keep track of remaining balance or is it keyed to a credit card and auomatically charged if I exceed my original load? I agree the differences may not be enough to ruin my trip but I think I have a basic understanding?
niqlaw is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:37 PM
  #25  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Remaining balance is accessible to the clerk when redeeming the card or you can check your remaining balance at many of the automatic machines at all tube stations. Nothing for you to worry about....

The 7 day zone 1 & 2 travelcard costs £25.80...the extension fare to Glouester Road at 1030 would be £1.10...there is probably still ☼1.90 of PAYG funds left on the oyster card (you can check it at any machine...even if the clerk made a mistake, the proper fare would be deducted by the computer)...
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:39 PM
  #26  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Actually, if your son wants a 7 day paper rail card, you still have the trip in from Heathrow (£4 cash fare)...I think the suggestion was both of you get oyster cards; son with 7 day travelcard + extension you oyster PAYG and then each day you wish to use 2 for 1, get a paper one day card from the national rail station seems to make the most sense.
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:44 PM
  #27  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Just checked the tfl brochure again...

Cost of PAYG zones 3-6 (which is what the Heathrow extension is) clearly listed:

Peak £2 (Before 0630-0930 weekday and 1600-1900 weekday)

Off Peak £1.10 Off Peak

So that's what the computer would have deducted from your oyster card....and we all know computers never make mistakes, only humans (such as Underground clerks) do!
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:44 PM
  #28  
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 817
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
xyz,
Did you see my post about the extension fares?
I hope the agent didn't just rip us off, but we were charged 3 pounds each for the supplement from Heathrow to Gloucester Rd at 10:50 AM last week. I still have the receipts. Do you they they just went up?
Hagan is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:47 PM
  #29  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Above should say peak 0630-0930 weekday...

see http://tinyurl.com/5xacqg
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 12:50 PM
  #30  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Again....I'm not questioning you that this was charged by the clerk but I suspect the extra £1.90 is still sitting on the oyster card (assuming it was a single trip)...did you use it one way?

See the above link....it's on page 4.....

The clerks on the tube are pretty honest...most likely a misunderstanding that you might have wanted a return (round trip) extension or he simply misunderstood you...but again if you ever return to London, that £1.90 is still waiting for you on the oyster card!
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 01:51 PM
  #31  
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 817
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
We didn't have a PAYG oyster - it was a 7-day travelcard (now expired) that was 25.80, plus the 3.00 for the supplement to Gloucester RD. There were 3 of us traveling together and we got 2 of the 7-day travelcards on oyster at Heathrow and one single fare for the trip into London. For the return from Gloucester Rd. to Heathrow at 6:10 AM, we were charged 9.60 for 3 supplements, as by then we had three 7-day travelcards (2 on oyster and 1 paper for the 2-4-1 discounts). So that would mean 3.20 each, but I'm thinking this was peak time, right?
I'm just thinking the fares for the supplements must have recently gone up.
I agree all of the agents were very friendly and helpful and I'm sure honest. But it all seemed very strange, as I had to do a separate charge transaction for EACH of us at Heathrow. I had requested 2 seven-day travelcards zones 1-2 with supplements for the trip to Gloucester Rd., and one single fare. He apologized for making me do three transactions but said that's the way it worked.
Hagan is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 02:31 PM
  #32  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Again, you must forgive me. I'm not questioning what you paid....but I've done these trips quite often and the table are there on the link what it should have been....was the day of your arrival included on your 7 day travelcards or were they scheduled to start the next day? Every oyster card will take PAYG besides a 7 day travelcard (same oyster card)...the cash fare from Heathrow to central London would be £4 regardless of whether you have a travelcard (paper) or not....as listed the extension is £2 peak and £1.10 non peak on a 7 day...so under that scenario your outlay should have been (if the 7 day card was to be effective on the day of arrival) £25.80 twice, £4 (the cash fare for person #3) and two extension fares (£1.10 twice) if peak £2 twice....

Now the same scenario holds for the day of departure....however if either coming in or going out, you were not using the 7 day tickets then you would be using PAYG on oyster....non peak is £3.80, peak is £2.20 and of course the cash fare remains £4, that would make £8.40.

Again there are all sorts of permutations possible. All I can tell you is that's what the fares should have been (for example perhaps the third person was sold or bought a 1 day off peak paper travelcard which for zones 1-6 is £7.50 and then two extensions would cost £2.20...that makes £9.70...it would be just for interest to know just what you bought but those are the fares and again you might still have PAYG funds on the oyster cards...they never expire so the next time you go to London, you might want to check out what's on them with one of the machines (or give them to a friend)...

Not trying to be argumentative, really I'm not. The link is to the latest brochure from tfl and the fares haven't gone up recently (they went up at the beginning of January)..
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 02:44 PM
  #33  
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 19,000
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
xyz, the extension has to start or end in Zone 2 to overlap with a 2-zone travelcard. If you figure Zone 3 as the end point, you haven't paid for the trip between 2 and 3.
Robespierre is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 02:54 PM
  #34  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
No robespierre...you get a zone 1 & 2 travelcard.....it's valid through the end of zone 2...your extension is for travel from zone 3 to zone 6 when talking abuot Heathrow...you travelcard covers you throughout zones 1 & 2.

I did check, just for curiosity, there is no Picadilly line station on the trip out to Heathrow on the boundary between zones 2 & 3 (some stations are considered boundary stations and are in two zones...Earls Court is an example, it is both zone 1 & zone 2..back in the days of the zone 1 7 day travelcards that came in very handy as the extension fare from Earls Court to Heathrow would be based on it being in zone 2 but since it was also zone 1 I would pay a less extension fare than from say High Street Kensington....

so my dear friend, if you have a zone 1 & 2 7 day travelcard, you need an extension to cover zones 3-6. Unfortunately, it just can't be done with a paper zone 1 & 2 travelcard...
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 02:58 PM
  #35  
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 817
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Wow, I really don't understand all of this, and it really is a mute point since it's over and done with. But, our cards started on our day of arrival, Thursday, Feb. 26, and we departed on Wednesday, March 4. I just brought it up as I thought it might benefit future travelers. In all truth, the agents seemed as confused by all of this as anyone.
Upon arrival, we stood in line at the tube ticket booth in Heathrow only to be told that we could purchase 7-day paper travelcards that would qualify for the 2-4-1 discounts if we just went downstairs - that he couldn't sell them to us because his was a "franchise." This surprised me, but we followed his instructions. So we went downstairs (the same level as the tube) and that's where we were told "no, you can't purchase the paper travelcards for the discounts here,that has to be done at a major train station." So he sold us the 7-day oyster travelcards, the 2 supplements for 3.00 each and the single fare of 4.00, each in a separate transaction. He took a long time and said he was trying to find us "the best deal." I remember telling my husband that the agents seemed as confused about all of this as we were.
Hagan is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 03:26 PM
  #36  
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 19,000
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I still don't think that's right. You have to pick a <U>station</u> in either Zone 2 or Zone 3 to be your start- or end-point. They don't sell extensions from the 2/3 <U>border</u> to LHR.

However, I'd believe a TfL computer printout of an Oyster's usage. You got one?
Robespierre is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 03:27 PM
  #37  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Wow...you really got a royal run around...certainly the bureaucrats at tfl and the national railroad system could figure out a way to work together and make the whole system less confusing regarding the 2 for 1's and the use of oyster cards on national railroad lines within greater London but that's still a ways away apparently.

But maybe just to help others, a moral of the story. Oyster cards never expire.....never. I would bet a nickel that there is still the extra money they charged you sitting on the oyster cards you had (yes the 7 day card has expired but PAYG never expires and every oyster card, even if your first purchase is a 7 day travelcard can carry PAYG funds whether for extra days in London or for extension fares...paper tickets do not.

We had a poster here, flanneruk, who seems to have disappeared with the new board and I miss him, despite his total anti Americanism which comes out in almost every one of his posts. He chastised (sp.) me about a year ago for questioning the idiocy of having these different policies between the national railroads and tfl. Me, I never need get involved with this as I travel single. I hope these 2 for 1's are good enough to mitigate the inconvenience they cause with paper vs. oyster card tickets....I suppose they are.

Also, I always have these fights with my friend whenever I visit his flat in London over just how superior the New York City subway system is...after all none of this zone garbage...one fare and you can travel from the top of the Bronx to the bottom of Brooklyn on the D train for about $1.75 if you buy a multi ride metrocard (on paper it seems to cost $2 but closer to $1.75 as noted with a muti ride metrocard). (Of course he counters how illogical that it costs the same to travel 2 or 3 stops as it does to travel from the Bronx to Brooklyn) but we don't need this whole touch in and touch out...you swipe in period.

Of course our subways are all air conditioned during the summer and the air conditioners do work (but the stations are hot as hell due to the conservation of energy laws, the heat from the air conditioning has to go somewhere) but London subways have destination boards which tell us how long till the next train, something the jerks in NY are just getting to and claim it will take another 25 years to have them system wide....

But I digress...it surely is as confusing as hell (and try to decipher the tfl brochure on fares for under 18's...sometimes you need a photocard, sometimes you don't etc.)
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 03:34 PM
  #38  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
No I don't but Robespierre...on 18 January 2009 I left my hotel in Bayswater, touched in at Bayswater station. I had a 7 day ttravelcard for zones 1 & 2 and £1.10 in PAYG....53 minutes later (that's all it took with a change at Earls Court) I touched out at Heathrow Terminals 1,2,3....no problem I did not get the Seek Assistance....my travelcard covered me from Bayswater to the end of zone 2 and the £1.10 was for my travel in zones 3-6....I don't leave the train...it's totally transparent..but it's a moot point and the fares for zones 3-6 are the same as the fars from zone 2 through 6.
xyz123 is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 04:20 PM
  #39  
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 817
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Well, I just wish I had correct info for future travelers. If I were to go back next week, I still wouldn't know what to do. Sure wish things could be a little simpler. Anyway, we had a grand time, the cards were convenient, and if we lost $10 in the process, so be it. Just wish I knew what to advise others, and wish someone could explain what happened in our case.
Hagan is offline  
Old Mar 8th, 2009, 06:24 PM
  #40  
yk
 
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 26,046
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
In Hagan's case, don't they have to pay the 3 pound deposit to get the Oyster card, even if it's Oyster with a 7-day travelcard loaded on it? Or is the 3 pound deposit waived?
yk is offline  


Contact Us - Manage Preferences Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Your Privacy Choices -