Neil Williams wrote:

Cheaper fares on Oyster, not artificially and ridiculously
over-expensive ones on paper.

Of course, that would be better but we have already tried that strategy
this year. It would appear that many people are still paying the 2
pound cash single compared to the 1.70 Oyster fare. It is clear that a
bigger differential is needed to encourage Oyster use.

In article .com,
(Richard Adamfi) wrote:

Neil Williams wrote:

Cheaper fares on Oyster, not artificially and ridiculously
over-expensive ones on paper.

Of course, that would be better but we have already tried that strategy
this year. It would appear that many people are still paying the 2
pound cash single compared to the 1.70 Oyster fare. It is clear that a
bigger differential is needed to encourage Oyster use.

Why should I be expected to get an Oyster for just 7 single tube fares
so far this year?

--
Colin Rosenstiel

Colin Rosenstiel wrote:
Why should I be expected to get an Oyster for just 7 single tube fares
so far this year?

Why not? It would save you money next year.

It takes 5 mins to get one, and then you just feed a tenner into the
machine when the barriers say you are getting low.

I love my oyster prepay, and delight in going straight through the
barriers while my work colleagues search their pockets for cash to go in
the ticket machine.


Tim

On Wed, 05 Oct 2005 02:47:14 +0100, Tim Bray
wrote:

It takes 5 mins to get one, and then you just feed a tenner into the
machine when the barriers say you are getting low.

....which TfL get to keep and earn interest on.

Oyster in its current form is not suitable for very infrequent
passengers. There is no excuse for blatently ripping these people
off. 2 quid was expensive, but 3 quid is offensive.

I hope the taxis increase their takings substantially and TfL's income
decreases accordingly, to teach them a lesson for this.

Neil

--
Neil Williams in Milton Keynes, UK
When replying please use neil at the above domain
'wensleydale' is a spam trap and is not read.

Neil Williams wrote:

I hope the taxis increase their takings substantially and TfL's income
decreases accordingly, to teach them a lesson for this.

There's an idea! How about Oyster Prepay in Black Cabs with a higher rate
if you paid by cash ;-)

--
Phil Richards
London, UK
Home Page: http://www.philrichards1.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk

It takes 5 mins to get one, and then you just feed a tenner into the
machine when the barriers say you are getting low.

...which TfL get to keep and earn interest on.

Oyster in its current form is not suitable for very infrequent
passengers. There is no excuse for blatently ripping these people
off. 2 quid was expensive, but 3 quid is offensive.

No. There is a *perception* that Oyster in its current form is not suitable
for very infrequent passengers. There is no minumum balance on the card.
Only put a fiver on if that is all you will use all year. You don't have to send
away your passport or have a credit check to get one - you just go to a tube
station and ask for one. You don't even have to fill in a form if you don't want
to. Its just plain old fear of change.

In article ,
(TKD) wrote:

It takes 5 mins to get one, and then you just feed a tenner into the
machine when the barriers say you are getting low.

...which TfL get to keep and earn interest on.

Oyster in its current form is not suitable for very infrequent
passengers. There is no excuse for blatently ripping these people
off. 2 quid was expensive, but 3 quid is offensive.

No. There is a *perception* that Oyster in its current form is not
suitable for very infrequent passengers. There is no minumum balance
on the card. Only put a fiver on if that is all you will use all year.
You don't have to send away your passport or have a credit check to
get one - you just go to a tube station and ask for one. You don't
even have to fill in a form if you don't want to. Its just plain old
fear of change.

How does one document the tickets in order to claim expenses then? Why
should I pay a year's worth up front?

It would be a different matter if WAGN used Oyster (though documentation
would still be a problem) but they don't.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

How does one document the tickets in order to claim expenses then?

You can request a statement which will be mailed to you the same day by 1st class post.

Why should I pay a year's worth up front?

You don't. You can charge up your card with only the cost of your next journey each time.

Neil Williams wrote:

It takes 5 mins to get one, and then you just feed a tenner into the
machine when the barriers say you are getting low.

...which TfL get to keep and earn interest on.


If you really want to pay for your tickets one at a time then you can
still do so with Oyster. Instead of putting 3 pound coins into the
machine and getting a paper ticket, you simply touch the Oyster card on
the ticket machine, select 'top-up' then put in the 1.50 then touch the
card onto the ticket machine again.

This way, you still pay the lower Oyster fare but you don't have to pay
in advance and lose your interest to TfL.

Richard Adamfi wrote:

Neil Williams wrote:

It takes 5 mins to get one, and then you just feed a tenner into the
machine when the barriers say you are getting low.

...which TfL get to keep and earn interest on.


If you really want to pay for your tickets one at a time then you can
still do so with Oyster. Instead of putting 3 pound coins into the
machine and getting a paper ticket, you simply touch the Oyster card on
the ticket machine, select 'top-up' then put in the 1.50 then touch the
card onto the ticket machine again.

This way, you still pay the lower Oyster fare but you don't have to pay
in advance and lose your interest to TfL.

I've done exactly this when I've found myself short of Pre Pay credit
on my Oyster card and a bit short of the readies. I just topped up my
Oyster's Pre Pay with loose change using a Tube ticket machine (and if
the machine wasn't working then I'd have gone to the ticket office).

I've also been in a 'Ticket Stop' newsagents where I was behind someone
who just wanted to add two quid of Pre Pay to their Oyster card, which
was done no problem. I asked the proprietor whether there was a
minimum, and he said there wasn't.