So my friend Geoff Marshall (of All the Stations fame) decided to try out some scenarios using contactless out to Brookmans Park. You can watch the video here.
The most important thing to take away is that not only are there no caps for Brookmans Park, if you travel to/from there then the whole fare will be treated as separate to any other cap that you qualify for. It’s actually treated a bit like the Gatwick/Heathrow Express fares, except that the whole range of fares to all PAYG stations are defined.
TfL and GTR say that capping will be introduced sometime in 2020, but I have to wonder whether the same arrangements will apply to all the stations out to Reading when contactless goes live on Jan 2nd. If they do then some people may pay more to travel from Reading and then around London than if they buy a paper travelcard.
Anyway, give the video a watch, and subscribe to Geoff’s channel.
Hi, I have an 11-15 Oyster card and was getting the train from Carshalton when the readers on the ticket gates weren’t working. I tried tapping on the barriers on the exit side and it charged me 75p. I went to the other entrance, tapped in and then tapped out at Cheam which cost me 75p. I then went back to Sutton, tapped out and it charged me 75p. Did I do something wrong at Carshalton? If so, how do I get a refund. The TFL website is unclear.
Hi Victory,
It sounds like you created an incomplete journey when you first touched out at Carshalton (touching the exit gates). I suggest calling the Oyster helpline and explaining what happened. They should arrange a refund to be picked up next time you use the card.