Paul Corfield wrote:
On 1 Nov 2005 13:13:36 -0800, "Mizter T" wrote:

(snip)

I've also wondered if Oyster Pre-Pay allows for such out-of-station
interchanges at more locations than paper ticketing would. An example -
I recently travelled from Harrow & Wealdstone to Euston (on
Silverlink), then on south via the Northern Line to Balham. I was
pleased to see the following when I checked my Oyster journey history
on a Tube ticket machine...

Harrow & Wealdstone - Euston
Harrow & Wealdstone - Balham

Which is, of course, correct and demonstrates how much more complex the
ticketing logic needs to be to deal with the permutations that are
possible. Now scale it up for pre-pay for all of NR in London!

And presumably why when (if!) Pre Pay comes to NR, it will be on the
basis of a zonal fares system (which wouldn't necessarily have to be
the same fares as the Tube). I always cringe at those who suggest the
current route-by-route NR fare structure could be handled by Pre Pay,
the complexity would be horrendous (and the passenger confusion would
be pretty bad too).

... i.e. the whole journey of Harrow & Wealdstone to Balham had been
treated as one. I've never done the aforementioned journey on a £3.80
tube single ticket but if I did I would fear that it'd be swallowed by
the ticket gates at Euston with the presumption that I'd completed my
journey.

I think you would get a ticket reject at Euston because LU fares are not
available for paper tickets from H&W while pre-pay fares are IIRC.

Doh! I forgot about that, what with H&W to Kenton being AIUI the sole
example on the LU network of where NR/LUL printed ticketing is not
interavailable (hence H&W to Euston not being valid on a LU printed
ticket)

OK, if I adjust my example a little, still using the DC lines (the
joint Bakerloo/ Silverlink Metro line) - if I went from Wembley Central
to Euston then on southwards to Balham on the Northern line, this is
what I'd see on the Journey History screen...

Wembley Central - Euston
Wembley Central - Balham

But would I be able to complete the same journey on a printed ticket? I
reckon I should be able to, but I'd be anxious that the automatic gates
at Euston would retain it, under the logic that my ticket was a Zone
1-4 single and I'd just completed a journey from Zone 4 into Zone 1.

Paul C

Thanks for the rest of your reply.