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I am considering buying a Travelcard on Oyster, and one of my usual extra zonal journey is to Brighton, and there is a high possibility that I will use Gatwick Express. However, due to technical limitations, if I tap my Oyster card at the Gatwick Express gate at Victoria station, a charge will be made.
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/gatwick_express_oyster_fare_deta
My plan is to use a London St Pancras – Brighton not Underground ticket, which has validity through Clapham Junction and Waterloo but not Victoria, and a 1-2 Travelcard for a non-stop split at Clapham Junction. How should I avoid the charge being made?
Hi Michael,
The only way to avoid the charge being made on your Oyster card would be to ask to be let through the gates. I’m not confident that you would be successful. I agree that the combination of tickets is valid and I would suggest contacting GTR customer services to ask why it’s not possible to use a valid combination of tickets on this journey.
Although I always keep some positive PAYG balance on my Oyster card for extrazonal travel, it is always less than a Gatwick Express fare. What will happen if I present such card at the Gatwick Express barrier?
For southbound direction, I always take the first train out of Victoria so there is a high chance that I can avoid the problem, by taking a Southern service before it, but if the first departing train is a Gatwick Express service to Brighton, how should I get through the barrier?
However, what will happen if I take a northbound Gatwick Express train all the way to Victoria, with my Brighton to St Pancras ticket and my Oyster card with Travelcard and a small amount of PAYG loaded? What should I put in the barrier in such circumstances?
Or should I put a large amount of PAYG balance on the card to get through the barrier, and reclaim the cost from TfL afterwards? I plan to do this frequently, multiple times per month throughout the summer.
If an Oyster card does not have sufficient credit to cover the Gatwick Express fare then it won’t open the gates to platforms 13-14 at Victoria. You would need to seek assistance. Your paper ticket won’t work the barriers either.
I would not recommend repeatedly asking TfL to refund Gatwick Express fares. They are likely to refuse after the first couple of requests because they will have explained that you can’t use the Oyster card in that way.
I repeat my earlier advice that you need to ask GTR customer services how to make the journey you require using the valid tickets that you have.
I have contacted GTR customer service. The response was that I would need zone 3 for my Travelcard. I then asked again about the route I intend to take and the response was that the ticket “isn’t expected to be valid” through Waterloo and Clapham Junction, which means a “loophole” has been brought to attention.
I am not responding further and depends on price difference, I’ll try to avoid this route or buy a ticket from West Hampstead Stations to avoid the problem.
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