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Source: (consider it)
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Thread: Cashless Busses
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Gwai
Shipmate
# 11076
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Posted
I still find that one can get on well enough without a smartphone. I can't imagine it being so easy to avoid the internet--obviously I have no desire to do that--but I have never owned a smartphone, and neither has my husband. In fact, we only own a single dumbphone together, and don't find it any trouble. Which is not to say that some people don't absolutely need a smartphone or that a time won't come when the rest of us will feel we need one. Still I'm always a little baffled by people who feel they need one and are marginalized by it. Except it turns out that they only need it to check facebook or use an app to see when the bus comes. My friends have yet to abandon me for not checking facebook every hour, and the bus gets to the transfer point just as reliably whether or not I confirm that it's coming at its scheduled time. And so forth
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A master of men was the Goodly Fere,
A mate of the wind and sea.
If they think they ha’ slain our Goodly Fere
They are fools eternally.
Posts: 11914 | From: Chicago | Registered: Feb 2006
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Leorning Cniht
Shipmate
# 17564
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Gwai:
I still find that one can get on well enough without a smartphone.
I don't have one, because the things are so hideously expensive in the US. I don't even have a dumb cellphone (which I could get for about $100/year) because I'd get so little use out of the thing that I'd end up leaving it in the office / home / my bag, or leaving it uncharged because I hadn't noticed, etc.
Posts: 5026 | From: USA | Registered: Feb 2013
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seekingsister
Shipmate
# 17707
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
Which evidently you feel you have to do every 24-48 hours, because you can't trust the system.
Rubbishing keeping an eye on one's bank account because you wish to argue that using a card to pay for the bus - is totally moronic.
Railing against debit cards honestly is going to look like people who said the internet was a fad 20 years ago.
I'll never forget watching Question Time one night and seeing David Dimbleby say "Apparently you can reach us on a Twitter now?" A few years later and he's talking about hashtags like he was born using them. It's called technological advance, accept it and move on.
Posts: 1371 | From: London | Registered: May 2013
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Karl: Liberal Backslider
Shipmate
# 76
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Anglican't:
quote:
Originally posted by Doublethink:
Or *can't* use one effectively. Incidentally, re the example of dysmorphic disorder and paranoia, these are not conditions which can be meaningfully described as choices. Nor is a severe deficit in abstract thought, or bipolar disorder.
But how many people have one or more of these conditions to the extent that they are unable to cope with a cashless / card-only transport system but can cope with one that requires cash (including cash-only)? What numbers are we talking about?
At a guess, I'd say the numbers are very small. I don't want to exclude anyone from public transport but at the same time no-one has the right to a personally-tailored system.
But you will exclude people, whether you want to or not - people who can't cope with the system that you prefer. Given that disabilities are what prevent use of that system, I can't see how this wouldn't be institutional disablism.
[ 08. July 2014, 14:40: Message edited by: Karl: Liberal Backslider ]
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Might as well ask the bloody cat.
Posts: 17938 | From: Chesterfield | Registered: May 2001
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Curiosity killed ...
Ship's Mug
# 11770
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Posted
Oyster cards do not require photo ID, only if you choose to register them at that level (there are two levels of registration). And you only have to do that level of registration if you're putting monthly or above season tickets on them. Oh, or if you're claiming a reduced fare for a reason - so 11-15 card. They are just bits of plastic, like a bank card or a credit card.
You can buy as many Oysters as you want. And although £5 for a card sounds expensive, it's not in relation to the fares. It's less than a single peak cash fare into London for me. I save the cost of an Oyster the first return journey I do on it off-peak, rather than paying cash. Further in, the fare differences are similar.
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Mugs - Keep the Ship afloat
Posts: 13794 | From: outiside the outer ring road | Registered: Aug 2006
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Ricardus
Shipmate
# 8757
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
Yes, and there's absolutely no proof against identity theft with this. They can run up a string of small purchases one at a time with your contactless card if they feel like it. Cash in the hand is at least finite - spend it and it's gone.
Also, it's possible to accidentally pay for something twice with contactless, or in some cases, when you haven't even swiped the card, but are merely standing near a POS.
Maybe it depends on the provider, but I thought you were supposed to be prompted for your PIN after a certain number of transactions even if all those transactions are for £20 or less.
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Then the dog ran before, and coming as if he had brought the news, shewed his joy by his fawning and wagging his tail. -- Tobit 11:9 (Douai-Rheims)
Posts: 7247 | From: Liverpool, UK | Registered: Nov 2004
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Doublethink.
Ship's Foolwise Unperson
# 1984
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Posted
Bugger the lot of you, (unless you agree with me.). I'm outta here.
[ 08. July 2014, 18:48: Message edited by: Doublethink ]
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All political thinking for years past has been vitiated in the same way. People can foresee the future only when it coincides with their own wishes, and the most grossly obvious facts can be ignored when they are unwelcome. George Orwell
Posts: 19219 | From: Erehwon | Registered: Aug 2005
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Curiosity killed ...
Ship's Mug
# 11770
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Posted
Well, I'm not going to agree with you, because you've made a number of assumptions about how London buses work and a significant proportion of those assumptions are wrong.
I travel around London on the buses all the time. Today I have travelled on the D7, 277, D6 and 25 (plus DLR and Tube). That travel was during the day, some is escorting students around. I can't remember the last time I saw anyone pay by cash. In fact the two times I tried a few months ago the bus drivers were really resistant to taking money, one refused entirely even though I was proffering change. What I see used is cards either by touch in on the readers, or showing of day travel cards or concessionary cards.
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Mugs - Keep the Ship afloat
Posts: 13794 | From: outiside the outer ring road | Registered: Aug 2006
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Ariston
Insane Unicorn
# 10894
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Posted
Sweet Fancy Moses, I thought I had escaped ever having to read about the arcana of London's transit system when I left the Circus.
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“Therefore, let it be explained that nowhere are the proprieties quite so strictly enforced as in men’s colleges that invite young women guests, especially over-night visitors in the fraternity houses.” Emily Post, 1937.
Posts: 6849 | From: The People's Republic of Balcones | Registered: Jan 2006
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orfeo
Ship's Musical Counterpoint
# 13878
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Ariston:
Sweet Fancy Moses, I thought I had escaped ever having to read about the arcana of London's transit system when I left the Circus.
It's another one of those topics that can appear anywhere on the Ship.
Heaven: Fun things that can be seen on the Tube.
Purgatory: Can London transport be fixed?
Hell: Bloody London transport!
All Saints: Our Shipmeet location needs to be convenient for public transport.
Ecclesiantics: Is it possible to have a Morning Prayer service on the Circle Line?
Kerygmania: Maybe the Amish are right.
Dead Horses: They've painted a bus in rainbow colours.
The Circus: Mornington Crescent.
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Technology has brought us all closer together. Turns out a lot of the people you meet as a result are complete idiots.
Posts: 18173 | From: Under | Registered: Jul 2008
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Spike
Mostly Harmless
# 36
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by orfeo:
Ecclesiantics: Is it possible to have a Morning Prayer service on the Circle Line?
For the record, no it isn't. You need the Victoria Line for that.
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"May you get to heaven before the devil knows you're dead" - Irish blessing
Posts: 12860 | From: The Valley of Crocuses | Registered: May 2001
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quetzalcoatl
Shipmate
# 16740
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Posted
I suggest a journey between Temple, St Paul's and Blackfriars tube stations might be suitable for theological cogitation. Mind the gap!
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I can't talk to you today; I talked to two people yesterday.
Posts: 9878 | From: UK | Registered: Oct 2011
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Albertus
Shipmate
# 13356
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Posted
What about tying your use of the Underground to the liturgical calendar, so that you only use the line whose colour is appropriate for the season?
Posts: 6498 | From: Y Sowth | Registered: Jan 2008
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Albertus
Shipmate
# 13356
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Posted
![[Killing me]](graemlins/killingme.gif) ![[Overused]](graemlins/notworthy.gif)
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My beard is a testament to my masculinity and virility, and demonstrates that I am a real man. Trouble is, bits of quiche sometimes get caught in it.
Posts: 6498 | From: Y Sowth | Registered: Jan 2008
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orfeo
Ship's Musical Counterpoint
# 13878
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Posted
Well, that's the Catholics and High Anglicans sorted, then!
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Technology has brought us all closer together. Turns out a lot of the people you meet as a result are complete idiots.
Posts: 18173 | From: Under | Registered: Jul 2008
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Spike
Mostly Harmless
# 36
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Posted
Nonconformists can use the Waterloo and City line as that is a bland colourless line
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"May you get to heaven before the devil knows you're dead" - Irish blessing
Posts: 12860 | From: The Valley of Crocuses | Registered: May 2001
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Karl: Liberal Backslider
Shipmate
# 76
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Spike:
Nonconformists can use the Waterloo and City line as that is a bland colourless line
Only if deep-level stations aren't in Nidd (Grassington Convention, 2006, Proceedings, Vol.37 Paras 45qq-51z)
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Might as well ask the bloody cat.
Posts: 17938 | From: Chesterfield | Registered: May 2001
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Sioni Sais
Shipmate
# 5713
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Posted
I know I've been on holiday for a while but I'm sure this isn't The Circus. Unless it's Oxford Circus.
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"He isn't Doctor Who, he's The Doctor"
(Paul Sinha, BBC)
Posts: 24276 | From: Newport, Wales | Registered: Apr 2004
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Karl: Liberal Backslider:
quote:
Originally posted by Spike:
Nonconformists can use the Waterloo and City line as that is a bland colourless line
Only if deep-level stations aren't in Nidd (Grassington Convention, 2006, Proceedings, Vol.37 Paras 45qq-51z)
In any case, it doesn't run on Sundays!
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Uncle Pete
Loyaute me lie
# 10422
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Posted
May I call Mornington Crescent?
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Even more so than I was before
Posts: 20466 | From: No longer where I was | Registered: Sep 2005
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Ariston
Insane Unicorn
# 10894
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Posted
Yes. You've won. GAME OVER.
No more MC in Hell. Go inflict that shit on DT, iF, and Pengu in the Circus if you must, but not here.
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“Therefore, let it be explained that nowhere are the proprieties quite so strictly enforced as in men’s colleges that invite young women guests, especially over-night visitors in the fraternity houses.” Emily Post, 1937.
Posts: 6849 | From: The People's Republic of Balcones | Registered: Jan 2006
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Palimpsest
Shipmate
# 16772
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Posted
Sadly from over here in Seattle, cashless buses causing difficulties seems like a minor problem.
We have passes and cash boxes, but we're about to lose 30 percent of bus service due to lack of funding. The County wide referendum to increase funding for the Metro transit failed, so there's a ballot initiative to raise taxes in the city to keep most of the city buses. Alas, they'll still probably cut the only bus that goes within a half hour walk of my house.
The cuts will disproportionately hit the poor and all the people who don't have cars as do all the fare increases.
Posts: 2990 | From: Seattle WA. US | Registered: Nov 2011
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Fineline
Shipmate
# 12143
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Palimpsest:
Sadly from over here in Seattle, cashless buses causing difficulties seems like a minor problem.
We have passes and cash boxes, but we're about to lose 30 percent of bus service due to lack of funding. The County wide referendum to increase funding for the Metro transit failed, so there's a ballot initiative to raise taxes in the city to keep most of the city buses. Alas, they'll still probably cut the only bus that goes within a half hour walk of my house.
The cuts will disproportionately hit the poor and all the people who don't have cars as do all the fare increases.
Yes, that's a major problem where I live too - that certain bus routes are being cut. And it's generally the bus routes to and from the poorer areas. For myself, I can either leave my house at 7:30am and walk four miles to work, or leave my house at 7:30am and walk twenty minutes to the bus stop that has a bus which stops a ten minute walk away from I work, and then take this bus and arrive at work forty minutes early. There used to be a later bus, but that has been cut. There also used to be several buses that went from outside my house to the bus stop where I take the bus to work, but most have been cut, and the one remaining one is very unreliable. Hence most of the time I just walk to work, unless I'm very tired. I wouldn't be able to do it if I had a mobility disability.
Posts: 2375 | From: England | Registered: Dec 2006
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
The bus which stops right outside my house stops running permanently as from 6 pm today!
Fortunately it is only about a 10 minute walk to other services, but grrrr!
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Persephone Hazard
Ship's Wench
# 4648
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Posted
I'm a bit baffled by how difficult people seem to think this is. I'm scatterbrained as all hell, but I just keep my Oystercard in my purse and, you know, top it up when it runs out. When you hit the barrier and realise it's out of money you just go and top it up at one of the machines that is undoubtedly nearby. I can't *remember* the last time it occurred to me to try and pay for London public transport in cash. It feels like a baffling and unlikely idea.
And actually, it's great for being so shit broke that you don't always know if you can pay the rent, because you can keep your travel money tucked away safe on your Oyster card and not have to worry about anything else eating it up.
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A picture is worth a thousand words, but it's a lot easier to make up a thousand words than one decent picture. - ken.
Posts: 1645 | From: London | Registered: Jun 2003
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Spike
Mostly Harmless
# 36
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Persephone Hazard:
I'm a bit baffled by how difficult people seem to think this is. I'm scatterbrained as all hell, but I just keep my Oystercard in my purse and, you know, top it up when it runs out. When you hit the barrier and realise it's out of money you just go and top it up at one of the machines that is undoubtedly nearby.
Undoubtedly? I've never seen such a machine near a bus stop. Where are they hidden?
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"May you get to heaven before the devil knows you're dead" - Irish blessing
Posts: 12860 | From: The Valley of Crocuses | Registered: May 2001
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
Correct. You can top-up at a Tram stop but not a Bus stop (I think). However there are loads of shops (typically little newsagents) where you can top-up.
TfL have an app. on their website which will tell you where the nearest shop is - not much use for me though as I don't have a smartphone. And, of course, the shop's no good if it's closed.
I don't know if bus stops have a notice telling you where the nearest top-up point is. However (1) you can make one more journey with no credit on your card and (2) in most parts of (central) ondon you're near a tube station where you can top-up - again, not much use if it's 2 am and you're on the night bus!
Ultimately it is your responsibility to make sure you have enough credit - just as, in the days of "cash only", it was your responsibility to make sure you had cash in your purse. The difference is that cash is more obviously visible.
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Spike
Mostly Harmless
# 36
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Baptist Trainfan:
However there are loads of shops (typically little newsagents) where you can top-up.
See my earlier post. There is one shop close to where I live that does Oyster, but their machine seems to be broken most of the time. All the other nearest outlets are a bus ride away.
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"May you get to heaven before the devil knows you're dead" - Irish blessing
Posts: 12860 | From: The Valley of Crocuses | Registered: May 2001
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Curiosity killed ...
Ship's Mug
# 11770
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Posted
Whereas where I am, outside the area where the London buses operate, I can top up an Oyster in two newsagents and at the tube station.
Buying a day travel card (paper ticket) for a flaky student most days (because he loses Oyster cards regularly) there are two DLR stations and a tube station within 5 minutes walk of his flat, and two of those are next to bus stops. And he can use that ticket on buses, trains, tube and DLR from Zones 1-6.
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Mugs - Keep the Ship afloat
Posts: 13794 | From: outiside the outer ring road | Registered: Aug 2006
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Spike
Mostly Harmless
# 36
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Posted
Good for you. That doesn't alter the fact that I don't have any of that nearby.
[ 16. July 2014, 22:37: Message edited by: Spike ]
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"May you get to heaven before the devil knows you're dead" - Irish blessing
Posts: 12860 | From: The Valley of Crocuses | Registered: May 2001
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orfeo
Ship's Musical Counterpoint
# 13878
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Persephone Hazard:
I'm a bit baffled by how difficult people seem to think this is.
And I'm a bit baffled how difficult it is to understand that the millions upon millions of people living in the London area, and the millions more who visit London, do not all have the same lives, or the same brains, or live next to the same corner shop.
[ 17. July 2014, 02:58: Message edited by: orfeo ]
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Technology has brought us all closer together. Turns out a lot of the people you meet as a result are complete idiots.
Posts: 18173 | From: Under | Registered: Jul 2008
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MrsBeaky
Shipmate
# 17663
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Posted
When I was back in the UK last month for my mother-in-law's funeral, I went to visit my daughter in London. I used my oyster card to pay on the bus. On the second bus, my card ran out of money and issued me with an emergency ticket allowing me to travel on that bus and then when I reached a machine and topped up the cost of the fare was deducted from the money I put on the card. My daughter thinks you get one emergency ride only, otherwise people could end up running up huge debts.
I thought that was a really helpful provision.
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"It is better to be kind than right."
http://davidandlizacooke.wordpress.com
Posts: 693 | From: UK/ Kenya | Registered: Apr 2013
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Curiosity killed ...
Ship's Mug
# 11770
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Posted
Yes, Oyster cards allow a debit charge.
An Oyster card won't let you through the barriers to a tube if there's not enough on the card for any journey, but if the journey costs more than the credit on the card the barriers give an audible warning at the end of that trip, and the window on the end of the barrier gives the cost of the journey and the balance on the card - which warns you that you now owe it money and can wander over to the cash machines and top up.
On a bus you get the same sounds - beep to let you on without problem, alarm beeping if there is a problem - but you can't see the balance.
It won't be the main areas of London where there will be a problem, it will be the outlying areas which aren't served by any stations (either overground, mainline, tube or DLR) easily but mainly by buses.
Thinking about the different places I travel to work with students across London, none of them are further than 15-20 minutes walk from a tube station or a bus ride. The one that is 15-20 minutes walk from a station has a newsagent selling Oyster top ups around the corner, near to the bus routes. And in those outside areas that I see there are Dial-a-Ride buses for the less mobile.
Bus rides are flat rate at £1.45, however long the journey.
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Mugs - Keep the Ship afloat
Posts: 13794 | From: outiside the outer ring road | Registered: Aug 2006
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Stumbling Pilgrim
Shipmate
# 7637
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Posted
What do you do if you're visiting London for the day and want to make one bus journey, so not worth getting a day ticket? (Not a rhetorical question, I'm probably going to need to know this)
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Stumbling in the Master's footsteps as best I can.
Posts: 492 | From: England | Registered: Jun 2004
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
I presume (not living in London) that this means the bus-stop ticket machines have gone. That is good in terms of roadside clutter (they were big and bulky) - but what a waste of money in putting them in to start with! However I understand that they were little used, with virtually all the fares they collected going on their maintenance ... technology has just moved on.
Mind you, I am old enough to remember the first "pay as you enter" buses in London - no Oyster cards in those days, or even pre-paid tickets. You either went in on the left and paid the driver, or on the right, used the ticket machine and went through the turnstile. The ticket machines were slow and fiddly, the turnstiles hard to push through and utterly non-buggy-friendly. Most folk paid the driver (who then had to give change), bus timetables got slower and slower - it contributed to the disastrous decline in service of the 1970s, only recently reversed.
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Curiosity killed ...
Ship's Mug
# 11770
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Posted
Use a cashless card to pay as you get on the bus - you need a card that does it automatically. Or buy an Oyster with enough money on it to cover the bus journey and cash it back in when you've finished.
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Mugs - Keep the Ship afloat
Posts: 13794 | From: outiside the outer ring road | Registered: Aug 2006
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Stumbling Pilgrim:
What do you do if you're visiting London for the day and want to make one bus journey, so not worth getting a day ticket? (Not a rhetorical question, I'm probably going to need to know this)
Having trawled TfL's website, I think Curiosity has the right answer. I don't think that single bus tickets are available any more. Does anyone know differently?
[ 17. July 2014, 08:30: Message edited by: Baptist Trainfan ]
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Stumbling Pilgrim
Shipmate
# 7637
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Posted
Thanks both. Right, so since I don't have a contactless card I have to:-
1. Get off train. (all right, I'd have to do that anyway.)
2. Find somewhere to buy Oyster.
3. Queue up to buy Oyster.
4. Make bus journey.
5. Find somewhere to cash in Oyster. (I have tried to do this on a weekend when I had a train to catch. Wasn't possible in the time I had.)
6. Queue up to cash in Oyster.
7. Go about my business.
Or I could pay twice as much to go by Tube.
(Not getting at anyone here, thanks again for the advice, but slightly annoyed at the extra time this is going to take me.)
[ 18. July 2014, 08:59: Message edited by: Stumbling Pilgrim ]
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Stumbling in the Master's footsteps as best I can.
Posts: 492 | From: England | Registered: Jun 2004
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Spike
Mostly Harmless
# 36
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Stumbling Pilgrim:
Right, so since I don't have a contactless card I have to:-
1. Get off train.
2.
It's only buses that are cashless. Trains, tubes and trams you can still buy a ticket with cash. For now, anyway.
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"May you get to heaven before the devil knows you're dead" - Irish blessing
Posts: 12860 | From: The Valley of Crocuses | Registered: May 2001
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Stumbling Pilgrim
Shipmate
# 7637
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Spike:
quote:
Originally posted by Stumbling Pilgrim:
Right, so since I don't have a contactless card I have to:-
1. Get off train.
2.
It's only buses that are cashless. Trains, tubes and trams you can still buy a ticket with cash. For now, anyway.
Heh! You were too quick for me Spike, you replied after I hit post too soon and before I had a chance to do the post properly! ![[Hot and Hormonal]](icon_redface.gif) (and yeah, that 'for now' was in my mind too)
[ 18. July 2014, 09:02: Message edited by: Stumbling Pilgrim ]
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Stumbling in the Master's footsteps as best I can.
Posts: 492 | From: England | Registered: Jun 2004
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seekingsister
Shipmate
# 17707
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Stumbling Pilgrim:
What do you do if you're visiting London for the day and want to make one bus journey, so not worth getting a day ticket? (Not a rhetorical question, I'm probably going to need to know this)
If you are arriving in London at an airport, train station, coach station, or tube station, you will be able to buy an Oyster card there and top up the amount you need for your journey. One bus trip is £1.45.
Posts: 1371 | From: London | Registered: May 2013
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
Sure, but as SP has said that will entail buying the card, putting on the credit (and I think the minimum you can put on is £5), making the journey, then finding somewhere to get a refund.
Of course, Oysters and the credit on them don't expire - so he can keep it for his next trip to London (as we do, even though we only go rarely).
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Curiosity killed ...
Ship's Mug
# 11770
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Posted
Buying the card and topping it up is quicker at the machines and they still take cash or ordinary bank cards. That queue will be the same as going anywhere else by tube.
The long queue will be to cash it in
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Mugs - Keep the Ship afloat
Posts: 13794 | From: outiside the outer ring road | Registered: Aug 2006
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Signaller
Shipmate
# 17495
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Posted
But if you are visiting for the day by train, you almost certainly have the option to buy an add-on day travelcard when you buy your train ticket. That's valid on buses, with no need to buy an Oystercard.
Posts: 113 | From: Metroland | Registered: Jan 2013
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Brenda Clough
Shipmate
# 18061
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Posted
I have purchased my Oyster cards by mail. All that is left now is to hope that they arrive before I depart. Can one just go to the station to cash in unused Oyster money? I am hoping to do this at Heathrow, shortly before I step on the departing airplane.
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Science fiction and fantasy writer with a Patreon page
Posts: 6378 | From: Washington DC | Registered: Mar 2014
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Ariston
Insane Unicorn
# 10894
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Posted
What is this, the Transport for London Oyster Card FAQ board?
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“Therefore, let it be explained that nowhere are the proprieties quite so strictly enforced as in men’s colleges that invite young women guests, especially over-night visitors in the fraternity houses.” Emily Post, 1937.
Posts: 6849 | From: The People's Republic of Balcones | Registered: Jan 2006
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Signaller:
But if you are visiting for the day by train, you almost certainly have the option to buy an add-on day travelcard when you buy your train ticket. That's valid on buses, with no need to buy an Oystercard.
It also gives you the freedom of the buses and the Underground, i.e. if things don't go according to plan you aren't stuck, and can take another route, stop off on impulse, etc. Personally I wouldn't bother with getting an Oyster just for one day when I can get a Travelcard add-on.
Posts: 25445 | Registered: May 2001
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Sioni Sais
Shipmate
# 5713
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Ariston:
What is this, the Transport for London Oyster Card FAQ board?
I'm merely grateful this tangent isn't on TICTH.
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"He isn't Doctor Who, he's The Doctor"
(Paul Sinha, BBC)
Posts: 24276 | From: Newport, Wales | Registered: Apr 2004
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orfeo
Ship's Musical Counterpoint
# 13878
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Posted
When I die in, say, 45 years time, I shall bequeath to my nephew my collection of transport cards, brought home from all the places in the world that I only visited once in my fucking lifetime that didn't happen to have a way of recouping the value of the thing at the airport I left from.
There may be a few duplicates, of course. I mean, at my current rate of travel, I may visit London as often as TWICE a decade seeing how my best friend lives in the UK. And I'm bound to forget, once in a while, to bring my shiny Oyster card with me.
And heck, they'll probably replace the system once in a while, and they'll probably do it in between so that when I turn up they'll say "sorry, you can't trade that in, the grace period ended 3 years ago".
They're not doing this to improve customer service, folks. They're doing it to have a guaranteed source of revenue. They're doing it to take cash off you before you actually need the transportation, and then hope that a proportion of you won't ever actually make use of all the transportation that you've paid for. Hey, if you don't make the full value of your purchase, that's YOUR fault, not theirs, right?
They'll take just a little extra of most people, yes, but spread that over the millions and millions of people that use the system (including all the visitors), and it's a bonanza.
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Technology has brought us all closer together. Turns out a lot of the people you meet as a result are complete idiots.
Posts: 18173 | From: Under | Registered: Jul 2008
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