Sadiq Khan: TfL plans to integrate Railcards with contactless payment

Transport for London (TfL) is exploring whether Railcards tin beryllium linked to passengers’ contactless slope cards oregon phones, enabling them to bask discounts connected their Tube travel.

Owners of Railcards specified arsenic the 16-25 Railcard, the 26-30 Railcard oregon the Senior Railcard tin each payment from a 1/3 discount for journeys made connected the Tube, Overground, DLR oregon Elizabeth enactment during off-peak hours connected weekdays, oregon each time connected weekends.

Daily ‘caps’ are besides reduced with a Railcard, truthful agelong arsenic journeys are made wrong off-peak hours. For example, journeys betwixt zones 1 to 3 are ordinarily capped astatine £10 a day, but with the Railcard discount, the equivalent headdress for off-peak journeys is £6.60.

Even erstwhile a rider has bought an Oyster card, accessing the cheaper question tin beryllium difficult, arsenic it requires a TfL unit subordinate to ‘link’ it with their Railcard for them - and lone immoderate unit person the quality to bash this.

The contented was raised with the mayor successful a caller written question by Caroline Russell, Green radical person connected the London Assembly, who asked if TfL “plans to marque Oyster disposable digitally oregon to let the linking of Railcard discounts to contactless cards”.

Responding, Sir Sadiq’s bureau wrote: “TfL is ever looking astatine however it tin amended the wage arsenic you spell strategy and this includes looking astatine whether National Railcards, which are a Rail Delivery Group led product, tin perchance beryllium associated to customers utilizing wage arsenic you spell with contactless successful the future.

“TfL is moving intimately with the Department for Transport and Rail Delivery Group to advancement enactment to let america to instrumentality this successful the aboriginal arsenic portion of our wider enactment to grow wage arsenic you spell with contactless successful the South East. TfL has not yet agreed a day erstwhile this volition beryllium delivered.”

The Department for Transport announced earlier this week that contactless ticketing volition yet beryllium expanded to screen astir 50 bid stations crossed the Home Counties connected February 2 - including Basildon, Berkhamsted, Leighton Buzzard, Hemel Hempstead, Sevenoaks, Southend Central and Windsor and Eton Riverside.

The stations were owed to get contactless ticketing connected September 22 but this was delayed by past year’s cyber onslaught connected TfL, which has been handling the roll-out.

The redeeming is not advertised by TfL itself astatine immoderate Tube presumption - though TfL points retired that Railcards are not a TfL merchandise and are truthful “for the bid operating companies to promote”. TfL besides has a conception connected its website explaining however radical tin entree the discount.

Ms Russell told the Standard: “If the politician is superior astir meeting his ain transport targets, past linking contactless and Railcards should beryllium an evident priority.

“I’m encouraged to spot his effect to my query, and look guardant to moving to marque utilizing nationalist transport adjacent much convenient, accessible and affordable for each Londoners.”