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Press Release Good news for First Great Western passengers as Oyster pay as you go is on the way The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, today announced a deal between Transport for London (TfL) and First Great Western that will extend Oyster pay as you go to all London stations served by First Great Western from September 2008. Thousands more passengers using these routes will be able to enjoy the greater convenience and speed of Oyster at stations from West Drayton and Greenford into Paddington. Zonal fares the equivalent of those on the Tube will apply for journeys from these stations. The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “This is excellent news for thousands of First Great Western passengers and takes us a step closer to making Oyster the only ticket you’ll need to travel in London. “TfL is investing £40m in new Oyster equipment and we will be working with the Train Operating Companies to agree their deals and open up Oyster for all Londoners. “I have committed to holding a summit meeting with the Train Operating Companies and I can confirm that this will happen before the summer. Completing the roll out of Oyster, improvements to services, station security and passenger safety will all be on the agenda as we work together to improve London's rail services.” Transport Commissioner, Peter Hendy, said: “With 17m cards issued since its introduction Oyster has been a huge success in speeding up journeys and cutting down on queues on the Tube, buses and national rail. “As this agreement shows, we are working hard with ATOC and the Train Operating Companies so that National Rail better serves Londoners, not only with Oyster but with better services and improved safety and security”. Andrew Haines, First Great Western's Chief Operating Officer said: "This is good news for our Greater London customers, who will now be able to use Oyster facilities throughout their journey. The extension of Oyster onto the First Great Western network fits in with our considerable investment in the refurbishment of the ticket office and new ticket machines at Ealing Broadway, and plans are in place for other stations, including Paddington. We are also spending £6.1m on refurbishing all our London and Thames Valley trains and fitting CCTV to increase the level of security for our customers. "Today's announcement also builds on First Great Western's investment of more than £15m in customer information systems, which will provide more consistent information and coverage of more stations, and we will be upgrading CCTV at stations." ENDS Notes to Editors Oyster pay as you go will be extended and accepted at the following National Rail stations in Greater London: West Drayton, Hayes & Harlington, Southall, Hanwell, West Ealing, Acton Main Line, , South Greenford, Castle Bar Park and Drayton Green. Oyster Travelcards are already valid on Greater London First Great Western services. About Oyster: In the five years since the introduction of Oyster card, the proportion of cash payments on the Tube and buses has fallen to just three per cent. As an example, with Oyster pay as you go you can load £10 onto your Oyster card and when you touch in and out at the yellow card readers on the Tube, Docklands Light Railway and London Overground or touch in on the bus or tram the reader automatically deducts the correct fare. Oyster is also available on-line at: www.tfl.gov.uk/oyster, over the phone via 0845 330 9876 or at Travel Information Centres across London. You can find your nearest Oyster outlet through the TfL website. Passengers can register the card so that the money is protected if the card is lost or stolen. Fewer ticket touts mean more secure stations. Passengers can store up to three different Travelcard or Bus Pass season tickets and cash to pay as they go on the same Oyster card at the same time. Oyster cards are also used to provide free travel for Londoners aged 60 or over or with an eligible disability through the Freedom Pass scheme and, on the buses and trams, under 18s in full-time education can also get Oyster photocards for free travel. When passengers use the Oyster card to touch in and out on the yellow card readers on the Tube, Docklands Light Railway, London Overground and touch in on buses and trams the system automatically works out the right fare for the journey within a fifth of a second from up to 1.83 million permutations. Almost three times as many passengers can pass through a Tube station entrance/exit gate using an Oyster card as can using printed tickets - 40 a minute compared to 15 a minute. Auto Top-up can be set up on line to ensure that passengers never run out of cash to pay as they go. When your balance drops below £5, it will automatically be topped up with either £20 or £40 the next time you touch in on any yellow card reader on Tube, bus, tram, London Overground or Docklands Light Railway. More information on Oyster is available at: www.tfl.gov.uk/oyster
For media enquiries please call Mayor’s Press Office on 020 7983 4070.
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