On Mon, 2 Jan 2006 08:10:20 +0000, "Clive D. W. Feather"
wrote:

[Z34 journey]
You may then ask, does it know whether you decide to go via Mile End
(Z2), in order to make the journey with just one change of train? The
answer is that it doesn't, and would still only charge you the Z34
fare.

Right.

AFAICS there's no way you could be liable for any sort of
penalty fare, either.

Not on the automated system, no. But if there happened to be an on-train
inspection the situation would change.

Would it, though? You'd have touched in at the start of your journey,
and would be travelling on a "reasonable" route to your destination,
so I can't see what you'd be doing wrong.

Come to think of it, would the situation change if you had a Z34
Travelcard season on your Oyster? (Bearing in mind that you're allowed
to travel outside your zones, at least on routes where pre-pay is
valid, as the system is "supposed" to charge you the excess
automatically.)