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London Oyster card craziness
I had been meaning to blog about this a month ago but never did, though a post by Jo Walsh has just reminded me about it.
Jo writes about being frustrated by the transport system in London and especially the changes introduced by the Oyster card - the touch in-touch out replacement for paper tickets.
I don't mind the Oyster so much: it does add a certain level of convenience, and the prices go up less quickly than the non-Oyster equivalents. It does have it's problems though and Jo summarises some of the major ones, mostly social, but below is one of the first-hand negative experiences I've had with the technological side of the system (I'll ignore times in the past when I've tried to get onto a bus, lacked credit, jumped off, topped up the card, chased alongside the bus to the next stop and then got on that same bus, noticing the Cheshire-cat grin on the driver's face) added as a comment to Jo's post:
Last time I was travelling through London, just before Christmas in the midst of the fog chaos, I managed to leave my jacket in the loos at Heathrow. Realising I'd forgotten something, I got off the tube at Hatton Cross and jumped back onto the next train going back to Heathrow. Leaving the gates, I spotted a 0.20 on the display and thought, that's a good deal for a short journey! Luckily I found my jacket again, and went back to the tube.This time, the gates wouldn't let me through, giving me only a cryptic number for the reason. The guy at the open barrier wasn't much more helpful, especially after I told him I knew I had almost 8 quid on there. He told me I had no credit and I should see the guy at the ticket desk.
At the ticket desk I was told the same thing, that I didn't have any money on there. I kicked up a fuss, knowing that I had money on there, and thinking that the last journey had cost me 20p. I explained the situation about 5 times, and he seemed confused. There was no record of me going into the system (I'd touched in, and the gate had opened), but then I'd come out, back to where I'd started. To them, after I'd told them what had happened, that was me going in without touching in, going one stop down the line, starting another journey without first touching out and then in again, and touching out for the first time. (Although why I got charged a double fine automatically, without them knowing that I'd touched in at the same place, I have no idea).
I didn't leave the desk until he'd re-credited the fine (minus a fee for a single journey, if necessary). Thankfully, he did just that. I was very grateful because he didn't have to, but as someone who was f*cked over by the system, I would have been very angry if I wasn't reimbursed.
The London Underground guy told me that the Oyster cards had caused more trouble for the staff behind the desks than the perceived benefits, and wished they were never introduced.
As you say, the queues may be shorter, but they take longer because the queries are hellishly complex.
Posted in London, Systems, Transport at 12:53 AM on Sunday 28 January 2007
Tags: London
Oyster Card
London Underground
Tube
Comments
The double fine is simple.
Heathrow - Hatton Cross: touched in, but didn't touch out; assume full journey made, charge maximum.
Hatton Cross - Heathrow: touched out, but hadn't touched in; assume full journey made, charge maximum.
As you say, it's odd that this happened even though there is no record of you having touched in.
Presumably there is a maximum time (perhaps 2 minutes) between touching in and out at the same station, where it is assumed you haven't been anywhere. After that, the system must assume you've been somewhere, i.e. that your touching out is not part of the same journey as your touching in. Strictly speaking, it is not, and thus you did fail to touch out at the end of your outward journey, and failed to touch in at the beginning of your inward journey.
Maybe, however, a different part of the system has a different limit - 10 minutes perhaps - which you hadn't overstepped, so it registered you as touching out where you touched in, and thus decided to delete your touching in.
Almost certainly a programming issue, through not having fully examined all possible scenarios of what absent-minded travellers might do.
Personally I think they should provide more information for "What if" scenarios, such as "What if you change your mind and turn round? -> Touch out and touch in again to avoid being charged even more". And from my own experience there needs to be much, much more information at Wimbledon station to facilitate travellers changing between tube, tram and the outside world about exactly when to touch in and out, and when not to.
Soon, National Rail in London is expected to start accepting Oyster pay-as-you-go. Expect huge headaches at all interchange stations...
Calling the helpline can be more effective than speaking to on-the-spot staff, as the helpline staff are better trained on these complex queries, but you can't do the "refuse to leave" thing quite so effectively.
Posted by: mQ ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.dankarran.com/blog/nav-commenters.gif)
at January 28, 2007 2:59 AM
As for Jo's thing about Oyster having dehumanised the system, I agree that it can do, but I personally do still find it possible to nod or even speak a greeting to the driver - as long as I'm not checking the screen to see my balance. In any other part of the country, where there is only one set of doors, you can easily thank the driver on the way out, and most people do. And London bus drivers have been behind plastic screens for decades. Perhaps the passenger's relationship to the driver has been damaged in London for longer than Oyster's lifetime.
And as for the posters/announcements about "Customers must... otherwise...", these can easily be rephrased to "Please remember to touch in and touch out, otherwise we have to charge you the maximum fare." If only TfL wanted to. Or if passengers protested.
I completely disagree with her first statement about public transport being free - and about the alleged "trust" system in other countries. The Paris Metro has gates at every single station - no trust there. And in Leipzig, frequent checks make Schwarzfahren a genuinely scary way to travel.
And I'm clogging your blog up with all this opinionation because I can't be bothered to register and sign up to Jo's. Sorry mate!
Posted by: mQ at January 28, 2007 3:12 AM
Let's face it - we know what's going to happen down the line.
Once a sufficiently large number of people are 'carded up', Champagne Communist Red Ken will hike up the fares higher and faster than he would have ever been able to under the old ticket system.
Why? Because once a person sets up the usual automatic regular top-up on their card, they become blase about any charges due to the old 'out of sight, out of mind' thoughtset.
Red Ken is a genius when it comes to squeezing cash from hard-working taxpayers (just look at the congestion charge - charging drivers for congestion caused in the main through poorly managed road works, one-way systems, and an uncoordinated traffic light network).
The oyster card will - mark my words - be Ol' Red's ticket to collecting more immorral revenue.
Posted by: Andrew Cochrane at March 4, 2007 5:01 PM
Fuck London. Not very constructive or informed, but that is exactly how I feel. This is the worst city in the world for commuting - it's a shambles. I honestly dont think we should be getting the olympics - this city really doesnt deserve it. I hate this place with a passion.
Posted by: Jim at May 7, 2007 7:24 PM
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