On 5 Feb, 12:50, Mizter T wrote:
On Feb 5, 12:15*pm, MIG wrote:





I hadn't noticed this. *Not mincing words.

http://www.londontravelwatch.org.uk/news.php?id=700

________________________________________

"Scrap OEPs now, says watchdog

London TravelWatch has called for the Oyster Extension Permits to be
scrapped.

Oyster Extension Permits, which were introduced by train companies
last week when Oyster Pay As You Go became available on national rail
services (successfully), are needed every time a passenger with a
zonal ticket on an Oystercard travels outside of their normal zones on
the railway.

Sharon Grant, Chair, London TravelWatch, said: “We are concerned that
passengers will be liable for penalty fares or fines as the permits
are difficult to understand and difficult to buy. Oyster PAYG is a
useful, convenient way of getting around London, but these permits are
the reverse of useful and convenient.”

Oyster Extension Permits have been hard for passengers to buy at
ticket machines, owing to technical problems for some train operators
and London TravelWatch has heard reports that not all train companies
are even enforcing them as they are so utterly bewildering for
passengers.

Sharon Grant, Chair, London TravelWatch said: “The Oyster Extension
Permit was a bad idea which is unnecessarily complicated, and it
should be dumped as soon as possible.”"

Yeah, saw that a few weeks ago - I think I'd read about Ms Grant's
comments elsewhere, so went to the LTW website so as to hear it from
the horse's mouth. Note also Peter Hendy's objection to the OEP system
as expressed in the latest TfL Board papers, describing it as an
"impediment to travel" and stating that TfL does not support it.

Given the fact that OEPs are not readily available from a great many
NR stations, I don't think any PFs that might be issued to anyone
travelling from said stations without an OEP would stand up to a
moment's scrutiny, so much so that I wonder if the PF would even be
issued in the first place. I'm certainly not going to go out of my way
to get an OEP if it's not available from my starting station (not sure
whether I'd be even bothered enough to descend into the bowels of
London Bridge to get an OEP from the Tube station ticket machines). Of
course putting this to the test might be hard, as it would involve
actually encountering someone doing revenue protection duties...

I can't remember the last time I encountered such a thing on SET or
Southern. On SWT sometimes and on LM nearly every time. It'll be
those people doing a job ... think it begins with "g" ...

I think LM is a good bet for experimentation.