How come if I get a refund it can be added at Watford Junc but if I do an
online top up it can't be added at Watford Junc or Euston main line.

Kevin

On Sep 1, 9:54*pm, "Zen83237" wrote:
How come if I get a refund it can be added at Watford Junc but if I do an
online top up it can't be added at Watford Junc or Euston main line.

Possibly might be the TOC, London Midland, protecting their ticket
office takings at WJ?

"Mizter T" wrote in message
...

On Sep 1, 9:54 pm, "Zen83237" wrote:
How come if I get a refund it can be added at Watford Junc but if I do an
online top up it can't be added at Watford Junc or Euston main line.

Possibly might be the TOC, London Midland, protecting their ticket
office takings at WJ?

But Watford Junc is never the less a London Overground station, seems odd
that it isn't a station that you do an online top up at.

"Zen83237" wrote in message
...

"Mizter T" wrote in message
...

On Sep 1, 9:54 pm, "Zen83237" wrote:
How come if I get a refund it can be added at Watford Junc but if I do an
online top up it can't be added at Watford Junc or Euston main line.

Possibly might be the TOC, London Midland, protecting their ticket
office takings at WJ?

But Watford Junc is never the less a London Overground station, seems odd
that it isn't a station that you do an online top up at.


Isn't it that you can only do online top up at *Underground* stations?

I've never understood why anybody bothers with online top up. I tried it
once or twice and rapidly came to the conclusion it is the utterly useless
and inconvenient way to administer a PAYG balance that it is.

In a previous post on uk.railway under the subject "Oyster top up at Kings
Cross" I wrote:

"Online top-up is for those who are prepared to use a klunky web interface
to buy something that has to be collected at a nominated place within a
certain time window with the risk that if the oyster balance runs out in the
meantime they might not be able to get to the nominated collection point to
collect the purchase in the first place."
....

"The only benefit I can see is the avoidance of ticket office/machine
queues. With my frequent but irregular travel patterns I always found it
easier and just as inconvenient to stuff a card into a ticket machine when I
spotted one without a queue. Then I activated auto top-up."

D A Stocks

On Sep 2, 10:11*am, "David A Stocks" wrote:

I've never understood why anybody bothers with online top up. [...]

Because what's no good for you is no good for anyone else, and anyone
who might demur is wrong?

[...] I tried it
once or twice and rapidly came to the conclusion it is the utterly useless
and inconvenient way to administer a PAYG balance that it is.

And therefore no-one might find it useful or convenient?

OK then, judgement has been given, tell TfL to pull the plug on it...

Mizter T writes:

On Sep 2, 10:11*am, "David A Stocks" wrote:

I've never understood why anybody bothers with online top up. [...]

Because what's no good for you is no good for anyone else, and anyone
who might demur is wrong?

I think we're all prepared to entertain the *possiblity* that it might
be good for someone, but you don't actually give any indication of who
they might be or why.

Do tell. My experience echoes Mr Stocks', so I would also be interested
to hear from people who do get use out of the service.


-dan

On 2 Sep, 10:11, "David A Stocks" wrote:
"Zen83237" wrote in message

...



"Mizter T" wrote in message
...

On Sep 1, 9:54 pm, "Zen83237" wrote:
How come if I get a refund it can be added at Watford Junc but if I do an
online top up it can't be added at Watford Junc or Euston main line.

Possibly might be the TOC, London Midland, protecting their ticket
office takings at WJ?

But Watford Junc is never the less a London Overground station, seems odd
that it isn't a station that you do an online top up at.

Isn't it that you can only do online top up at *Underground* stations?


It seems to be available at all DLR, London Overground and Underground
stations, except some run by a National Rail company (so no Clapham
Junction, Richmond or Wimbledon either, but Barking and Upminster are
allowed (these last two are C2C stations))

"David A Stocks" wrote in message
...
"Zen83237" wrote in message
...

"Mizter T" wrote in message
...

On Sep 1, 9:54 pm, "Zen83237" wrote:
How come if I get a refund it can be added at Watford Junc but if I do
an
online top up it can't be added at Watford Junc or Euston main line.

Possibly might be the TOC, London Midland, protecting their ticket
office takings at WJ?

But Watford Junc is never the less a London Overground station, seems odd
that it isn't a station that you do an online top up at.


Isn't it that you can only do online top up at *Underground* stations?

I've never understood why anybody bothers with online top up. I tried it
once or twice and rapidly came to the conclusion it is the utterly useless
and inconvenient way to administer a PAYG balance that it is.

In a previous post on uk.railway under the subject "Oyster top up at Kings
Cross" I wrote:

"Online top-up is for those who are prepared to use a klunky web interface
to buy something that has to be collected at a nominated place within a
certain time window with the risk that if the oyster balance runs out in
the meantime they might not be able to get to the nominated collection
point to collect the purchase in the first place."
...

"The only benefit I can see is the avoidance of ticket office/machine
queues. With my frequent but irregular travel patterns I always found it
easier and just as inconvenient to stuff a card into a ticket machine when
I spotted one without a queue. Then I activated auto top-up."

D A Stocks

But they can add a refund at Watford Junc.

Kevin

"Zen83237" wrote in message
...

"David A Stocks" wrote in message
...
"Zen83237" wrote in message
...

"Mizter T" wrote in message
...

On Sep 1, 9:54 pm, "Zen83237" wrote:
How come if I get a refund it can be added at Watford Junc but if I do
an
online top up it can't be added at Watford Junc or Euston main line.

Possibly might be the TOC, London Midland, protecting their ticket
office takings at WJ?

But Watford Junc is never the less a London Overground station, seems
odd that it isn't a station that you do an online top up at.


Isn't it that you can only do online top up at *Underground* stations?

I've never understood why anybody bothers with online top up. I tried it
once or twice and rapidly came to the conclusion it is the utterly
useless and inconvenient way to administer a PAYG balance that it is.

In a previous post on uk.railway under the subject "Oyster top up at
Kings Cross" I wrote:

"Online top-up is for those who are prepared to use a klunky web
interface to buy something that has to be collected at a nominated place
within a certain time window with the risk that if the oyster balance
runs out in the meantime they might not be able to get to the nominated
collection point to collect the purchase in the first place."
...

"The only benefit I can see is the avoidance of ticket office/machine
queues. With my frequent but irregular travel patterns I always found it
easier and just as inconvenient to stuff a card into a ticket machine
when I spotted one without a queue. Then I activated auto top-up."

D A Stocks

But they can add a refund at Watford Junc.

Kevin
I assume this is yet another weirdness of online top up.

Somewhere near the start of this thread I asked for people who use online
top up and find it to be easier and more convenient than manual top up at
ticket machines to tell us why they found this to be the case.

Somebody posted a valid but rather spurious suggestion that using a ticket
machine means somebody might get to see your credit/debit card PIN. If I
were to post my PINs here on a newsgroup what would anyone be able to do
with them without the cards? I suggest people have a *lot* more to be
worried about in terms of security when entering into online transactions
over the web from a PC.

From there the thread went off into discussions about the progress Foyles
have made in book retailing over the last 30 years. Meanwhile, I'm still
waiting for the online top up user to pop up and tell me what I've been
missing out on over the years.

I suppose that's Usenet for you ...

D A Stocks