Transport for London issues 10 millionth Oyster card

Photo: Adam Taylor, Reuters.

From the website 24Dash. The Oyster Card is the London version of DC's SmarTrip transit card. From the article:

Around three quarters of all Underground and bus payments in London are now by Oyster card. In the three years since the introduction of Oyster card, the proportion of cash payments on London's Underground and buses has fallen to just five per cent.

According to TfL, the benefits of Oyster card payments in speed on the transport system are huge. Almost three times as many passengers can pass an Underground payment gate using Oyster card as can using printed tickets - 40 a minute compared to 15 a minute. Even greater time savings exist on buses of Oyster card payment compared to cash.

But cash users keep getting tagged for big fare increases. See "Londoners 'misled' over fare rises." From the article:

A report by the London Assembly's Budget Committee in September showed that the lowest socio-economic groups account for a quarter of London's population, but account for only 12 percent of Oyster pay-as-you-go users. This means that many Londoners on low incomes are not getting the advantage of the cheapest fares for public transport and will be hardest hit by today's cash fare rises.

The Budget Committee's report recommended a number of ways the Mayor and Transport for London could increase the take-up of pay-as-you-go Oyster cards by low income earners – even if it means waiving the deposit and giving them Oyster cards for free to get them started.

Click here for the London Assembly Budget Committee materials:
-- Tube and bus fares report
-- Tube and bus fares written evidence

Index Keywords: transit