"Paul Corfield" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 23 Nov 2010 06:16:48 -0800 (PST), Paul
wrote:

It might not be a bad idea though. There are regular problems on the
buses where I live (Walthamstow) where people with Oyster PAYG touch
in with insufficient credit. When the bus driver explains that they
don't have enough credit and will either have to pay cash or get off,
some of them pretend not to understand and ask the driver whether they
can travel for nothing, as it is 6am and they have to get to work.
This causes delays which tends to p**s everyone off.

I don't know if there is an easy solution to this issue though.

The easy solution is that people stop taking the **** and make sure
there is enough value on their cards. This is a standard "dodge" that
some people play in order to get their bus rides for free. I have seen
it so many times and the weary response from drivers suggests it is a
regular routine from the same old faces.

You would also be amazed at the number of people who go to a machine and
load just enough for the journey they are about to make. I recognise
some people are on tight budgets and cashflow is everything but I was
still surprised when I saw this recently.

Me!

I live out of London and unless I am expecting to make less than two
underground trips that day will arrive with an out-boundary ODTC.

Consequently, if I do need to use my Oyster I will need it for only one
underground or two bus trips so I feed it with the appropriate amount before
travel (though I usually add round pound amounts and end up with, say, 80p
spare).

Sometimes it can sit in a drawer for 18 months between uses and I don't like
have a large unnecessary balance on it, just in case

tim