The Anonymous Widower

53 Train Stations To Benefit From Tap-In Tap-Out Rollout

The title of this post, is the same as that of this news story from the UK Government.

This is the sub-heading.

Passengers across the South East of England will benefit from ‘Pay As You Go’ technology by the end of December 2023.

The news story has these three bullet points.

• £20 million of government funding marks the first phase of the government’s commitment to extend Pay As You Go to a further 200 stations in the South East
• The department is also working with Great British Railways transition team (GBRTT) to agree Pay As You Go pilots in the Greater Manchester and the West Midlands by the end of the year
• Both form part of the government’s plan to make fares and ticketing simpler and more convenient for passengers

If I look at the list of 53 stations to be added in this first phase, several are ones I have regularly used.

• Beaconsfield
• Bletchley
• Bricket Wood
• East Tilbury
• Gerrards Cross
• High Wycombe
• Kempton Park
• Southend Central
• Southend East
• St Albans Abbey
• Staines
• Windsor & Eton Riverside

With the Government saying that this list of stations in the South East, will rise to 200, I suspect that the number of listed stations, where I go regularly will increase.

At present, if I go to a contactless station like Gatwick Airport, which is outside of the Freedom Pass area, I have to buy an extension ticket, either before I board the train or I have to get off somewhere like East Croydon and tap-out with my Freedom Pass and tap-in with my bank card.

Surely, a better system, would be to be able to link a bank card to my Freedom Pass. This would enable my bank card to be charged excess on my Freedom Pass.

July 5, 2023 - Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Contactless Ticketing, Department for Transport, Freedom Pass, Ticketing