Latest Extensions – Project Oval Phase 2a

Time for a review of the latest expansion of contactless payments in the South East.  It’s safe to say that things didn’t go according to plan, but read on for more details, including measures being taken to address issues that have been found.

Information on this site

I’m pleased to say that adding extra information on this site did go more-or-less as planned.  Getting details of the caps for the new stations proved difficult because for some unknown reason it appears that someone thinks that telling people what they might have to pay in advance is breaking commercial confidentiality.  Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) were responsible for setting many of the new caps and they did manage to get details to me before the live date.  This proved invaluable because there were unexpected changes to caps at several existing stations. The National Rail site updated their list in the early hours of December 14th, so I was able to include full information later that day.  The time allowed to complete journeys was added on Tuesday, while the zonal coverage for journeys from the Oval area is still sadly lacking.

The Actual Update

As already noted, things started going wrong a few weeks before when the 20 new stations on Greater Anglia were suddenly pulled from the update.  The data for the rest went live in the systems on December 7th with the gates and validators at the new stations switched on from the 14th.  Unfortunately several issues hadn’t been foreseen until the go live.  Some of the fares to London terminals from the Stevenage area were wrong, but the return fares from London were right.  The requirement to exit and re-enter through gatelines when changing trains at either Stevenage or Welwyn Garden City means that some journeys will be split in two and overcharged. And some of the evening fares from the south have the wrong setting meaning that peak fares will be charged when they should be off-peak.

Statement from GTR

The following announcement appeared on GTR websites and on posters at affected stations yesterday:

Important update about contactless fares at stations included in the recent extension of pay as you go with contactless

Following the launch of pay as you go with contactless to an additional 21 GTR stations on Sunday 14 December, we have identified a technical issue affecting a small number of contactless journeys on the Great Northern and Southern network.

You may be initially charged an incorrect fare for affected journeys. Any additional charges will be automatically refunded, backdated, and processed weekly from week commencing Monday 5 January 2026. Refunds will typically be received by customers within 24 hours of issue. No action is required from customers. This issue only affects journeys made using contactless payment and does not impact paper tickets, Smartcard journeys, or eTickets. Daily and weekly capping remains in place and is unaffected by these issues.

If you think you may have been overcharged, you can review up to seven days of journey history and charges by setting up an account on the TfL website, which also provides additional useful features. To check the charge applied against the correct fare, you can compare your journey details on National Rail Enquiries.

We are working with TfL on a permanent fix. However, changes to address this issue can only be implemented as part of a wider ‘Fare Setting Round’, with the next one scheduled for March 2026. In the meantime, we are ensuring that all fares data for pay as you go with contactless journeys is accurate and fully verified before release. Additional checks and testing will also be carried out to prevent this issue from recurring.

Passengers travelling from some stations may currently be undercharged when using pay as you go with contactless. You will not be asked to pay any extra for past or current journeys. From March onwards, fares will be charged at the correct rate.

We apologise for the inconvenience and are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. If you have any queries about refunds, you can contact TfL customer service team on 0343 222 1234 or visit their website.

Which journeys are affected by the recent technical issue

• Journeys from the stations on the Hertford Loop, interchanging at Stevenage, to Potters Bar, Brookmans Park, Welham Green, Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City, Welwyn North, Knebworth, Hitchin, Letchworth Garden City and Baldock
• Journeys from Baldock, Letchworth Garden City, Hitchin, Stevenage, Knebworth, Welwyn North and Watton-at-Stone, interchanging at Welwyn Garden City, and travelling south on Great Northern Metro services to all stations including London Moorgate
• Journeys from Baldock, Letchworth Garden City, Hitchin, Stevenage, Knebworth, Welwyn North and Watton-at-Stone to London St Pancras, London Kings Cross, Moorgate and Old Street
• Journeys between 16:00 and 19:00 Monday to Friday  from Dorking, Boxhill & Westhumble, Leatherhead, Ashtead, Reigate, East Grinstead, Dormans, Lingfield, Hurst Green, Oxted and Woldingham to selected stations in the London & Southeast area.

Only the journeys listed above are affected. Journeys wholly within the original pay as you go with contactless area remain unaffected with the best price guarantee on the day for full adult fares.

How does the automatic refund process work

TfL will review your journeys on a weekly basis and any flagged as affected will have an automatic refund applied to the payment card or device used.

Refunds will show on journey history and charging statements within 24 hours of them being issued.