Transport for LondonIn the pink with Oyster
To benefit from cheaper fares, Transport for London (TfL) has announced that all Oyster pay as you go passengers must touch their cards on new pink Oyster route validators when they change between services at: Gospel Oak, Gunnersbury, Highbury & Islington, Kensington Olympia, Rayners Lane, Stratford, West Brompton, Willesden Junction and Blackhorse Road stations.
With the introduction of these new validators, the Oyster system will identify when passengers have avoided travelling through Zone 1 for journeys where there are several different choices of route.
By touching in mid-way, as well as at the start and end of your journey, the pink readers will show that you have avoided Zone 1 and will charge the appropriate fare, which may be cheaper.
The improvement is part of a £40million upgrade of Oyster that will enable the roll-out of pay as you go on National Rail services in London from January 2010.
Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor of London's transport adviser, said: 'This latest improvement again shows the Mayor's commitment to delivering Oyster on National Rail and also ensuring that fare paying passengers get the best deal when using Oyster.'
Go to tfl.gov.uk/oyster for more
How much could doing this save me?
A journey from Watford Junction to Richmond costs £7 (Peak) and £4 (Off-Peak) when you travel via Zone 1.
This is cut to £3.50 and £1.10 respectively by changing trains at Willesden Junction.
The cost of travelling from Epping to Richmond could be cut from £3.80 to £2 by changing services at Stratford.
