Hi! Just back from the UK. In London I remembered what someone mentioned
here -- that there's a little screen at the gates to the Underground
where you can see your Oyster balance as you're about to pass through.
Yes. And no. My first station had it. I was overjoyed (well...). After
that it was iffy. Some stations had screens, some had them but they
didn't work, and some didn't have them at all.

At Queensway one evening I hesitated while peering at the little screen
and then the gate wouldn't let me through. I compounded this sin by
touching the sensor with my Oyster again. I was still stuck, only now I
had about 100 tired commuters behind me saying to go see the station
master.

Really long story short, I got electro-charged 2 more fares by the time
I was liberated, but I had the money put back by the fare booth man up
the road at Bayswater. (Something told me to check my balance.) He
printed out a slip of paper with all my underground journeys!

Trains ran very smoothly, btw, and I lucked out with timing, hardly
having to wait for them at all. Was I just fortunate? Or have things
improved? I notice the Oyster no longer works to save you money. It's
now L1.80 per journey (in zone 1&2 for me)each and every time. Last year
I seem to recall you wouldn't go over a certain amount of money on a
given day within your zones.

Cat