On Mon, 27 Jul 2009 11:20:56 -0700 (PDT), John B wrote:

I had a paper ticket today and one of the gates at KX tube wouldn't
accept my ticket into the slot. A commuter pointed out that it was an
"Oyster only" gate - indicated merely by the dim green LCD that you
don't need to look at, if you have a paper ticket. Are these gates
common/recent?

Normally that's only the case when the ticket-reading part of a gate
fails but the Oyster-reading part remains intact (which is relatively
common, as the Oyster reading mechanism is electronic and fairly
robust, whereas the ticket reading mechanism is mechanical and
painfully complicated).

More because the paper-ticket mechanisms in the 3rd-generation gates
(like at KXSP) are rubbish and seem to break down constantly.

The ones in the 1st- and 2nd-gen gates are much more reliable. (I
don't think I've ever encountered a failed paper-ticket mechanism in a
1st-gen (pneumatic) gate - they don't make 'em like they used to.)