On Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:21:12 -0000, "Stephen Osborn"
wrote:

There is the cost of my time in travelling to & from two Tube stations
outside Z1.

Surely the answer for people like me who are 5-6 miles from 4
underground stations and who have internet access is to buy a card
from the Oyster website with PAYG already enabled. Then the other
arguments that we're having here don't apply.

1. Journey history is only available to customers if they have purchased
pay as you go credit (including Auto top-up) from Oyster online. Why? The
data is in TfL's computers. They have software to publish that via a web
intertface. So why is only some data available.

As said elsewhere, probably for data protection reasons, given the
nature of the project (which didn't *need* to be like that).

2. Oyster retailers can sell seven day (and longer) Travelcards on Oyster
but not one day Travelcards.

Not necessary once all trains are included, and I can see an argument
that we are simply in a transitional or rollout phase, though I think
after 4 years the argument is getting a bit thin.

3. The Tram terminus at Wimbledon is a mess. AFAIUI, if you are using
Oyster PAYG then you have touch out on the Tram platform before exiting
through the barriers. If you don't touch out on the Tram platform then you
are charged for a Tram journey to Wimbledon and a £5 minimum Tube fare for
using the barrier. Even if it does not get sorted out immediately at the
barrier then overnight the system should be able to work out that you
started at a Tram stop and ended at Wimbledon and only make the appropriate
charge.

It's not quite like that, but I only know now after the most expensive
tram journey I've ever done. You can *leave* a tram and go straight
to the barriers. It's just upon entering the station that, having
touched in at a barrier, you have to do it again at the validator in
the platform so that you do not have an unresolved journey at the
National Rail rate - £5? - still on your card.

My problem was that I touched in at East Croydon, got a successful
indication followed immediately by a cryptic error message (but
probably paid for the journey), tried again and got a different error
and to avoid any trouble bought a paper ticket, thinking that the
Oyster had failed. Upon arrival at Wimbledon, I got confused (as
above) and touched out at the platform validator, paying a third time.
I was changing onto NR so didn't touch out at the Wimbledon gateline,
perhaps that would have removed the third charge?

I agree - it's a mess, simply mitigated, if the situation must
persist, by VERY obvious signage at Wimbledon.

The warning posters about this say that the same is true if you have a
Travelcard on Oyster but I know for a fact that that is not the case. So
either TfL don't know how their systems work or they are lying.

I think they're deliberately simplifying the message. They do the
same wherever the "need" to touch in and out is explained.

Richard.