On 25 Apr, 01:15, Paul Weaver wrote:

On 5 Mar, 00:54, Mizter T wrote:

On 4 Mar, 23:25, Rupert Candy wrote:

(snip)

It does seem a massive oversight to me, when TfL is trying so hard to
promote Oyster as a replacement for all paper-based tickets (which it
blatantly isn't, at least not yet!)

Well, of course Oyster Pay-as-you-go isn't available on most National
Rail services in London - but that's not for the want of TfL and the
Mayor's trying! It will happen in the next few years.

But the biggest flaw with oyster is the "bus replacement" issue. If I
get a tube from Epping to Oxford Circue, and there's a "replacement
bus" from Loughton to Leytonstone, I get charged for at least two tube
journeys, and maybe a bus journey too. In many cases at the weekend,a
paper ticket is cheaper, and certainly less stressful.


I think you're mistaken Paul. When the District and Piccadilly lines
were suspended between Acton Town and Hammersmith at the weekend
recently, I specifically decided to test out what happens when one
makes use of a replacement bus for part of the journey. So...

- I started off at Ealing Broadway, and entered the station via the
gates (and hence touched-in);
- then took the District 'shuttle' that terminated at Acton Town;
- left the station via the gates (and hence touched-out);
- got on the replacement bus to Hammersmith (no need to touch-in as
there was no reader);
- entered Hammersmith station via the gates (and hence touched-in);
- took the Piccadilly line to Earl's Court;
- left the station via the gates (and hence touched-out).


I then checked what I'd been charged, and for the whole journey it was
£1 - which is the correct PAYG fare for a zones 2&3 journey. The
system had been configured specifically so as to allow for what I had
just done, so when I re-entered through the gates at Hammersmith it
just resumed my journey rather than starting a new one.

On other replacement buses perhaps you might have to touch-in, but if
so I don't think these are ever configured to actually charge you
anything - the East London Line replacement buses all charge you a 0p
fare (i.e. zero pence) when using Oyster PAYG.

Therefore I contend that the supposed Oyster "bus replacement issue" /
flaw that you speak of simply doesn't exist, as the system has been
designed to accommodate for such things.