18 November 2025
Our response to the welcome news that contactless payments are to be extended to stations including Stansted Airport:
We know a lot of passengers travelling to London Stansted Airport by train have been penalised for using their contactless payment card at the start of the journey, without realising it was invalid when exiting at the airport. We said this was unfair and we are pleased to see that our call to extend contactless payments to this part of the rail network will soon be answered.
But passengers still need to be savvy to avoid paying over the odds and the rail industry has got be super-clear in communicating the changes. For example, Oyster cards won’t count as contactless cards and will still not be valid at Stansted Airport Station. Some passengers (such as those with railcards) might not get the cheapest fare if they go contactless. And some rail information channels still don’t display cheaper contactless fares when you’re planning your journey
