Passengers using Oyster cards on some journeys avoiding zone 1 may still be charged for going via zone 1 and should check their Oyster statements, warns London TravelWatch. 

After a passenger contacted us about being charged for a zone 1 journey, despite not travelling via central London, we discovered that on some routes, Oyster cannot differentiate between passengers using zone 1, and those avoiding zone 1, which should be cheaper. In this case, Transport for London (TfL) charged the default higher fare via zone 1.

Sharon Grant, Chair, London TravelWatch, said: “We agreed with the passenger that this was unfair, and that the constraints of Oyster software meant that passengers were potentially losing out and paying more than they should for their ticket.”

After discussions with TfL, it was agreed that special arrangements would be made for this particular route* to enable an automatic adjustment and automatic refund to be given.

Sharon Grant continued: “While we are pleased to be able to help this passenger, it is more than probable that there are other passengers using less direct routes avoiding zone 1, and being charged more as a result of the limitations of the Oyster system. We urge passengers to check their Oyster accounts, and if any passengers think they are being charged incorrectly for journeys they are not making, they should contact TfL and London TravelWatch.”

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For any media enquiries, please contact the London TravelWatch press office on 020 7726 9953.

*The journey was Hackney Central via Camden Road and Camden Town to Edgware, which avoids zone 1. It was argued that many passengers travelling between Hackney Central and Edgware would travel via Highbury and Islington and Euston which does go through zone 1. The software could not differentiate between the two journeys, and, therefore, the zone 1 price is charged.