Comments on: The grit in the Oyster http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html Our place to talk - an independent website for supporters of the Liberal Democrat party in the UK. Sat, 11 Feb 2012 03:46:54 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Simon Robinson http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html#comment-110176 Simon Robinson Fri, 12 Mar 2010 10:37:07 +0000 http://www.libdemvoice.org/?p=18107#comment-110176 I've just sent a request to Oyster for more information about my own travel history (more precisely, the amounts charged to my Oyster PAYG card). Basically, the statement of my travel history (needed for an expenses claim) appears to show errors in the costs charged. For example, - balance £8.40 - fare charged on entry to train station £6.00 - new balance £0.60 (!) - fare credited on exit at destination £3.40 - new balance £4.00 So the fares charged appear correct as £6.00 - £3.40 = £2.60 which is the correct fare for that journey at that time. But my balance has reduced by £4.40. This isn't the first time this has happened, I simply have never bothered to follow it up before as it is a relatively small sum and assumed I was reading the statement incorrectly. Unfortunately, Oyster only provides an 8 week travel history so I can't revisit the older ones to confirm. Has anyone else noticed this? If I'm not the only one affected, how much is this overcharging bringing in in total? I’ve just sent a request to Oyster for more information about my own travel history (more precisely, the amounts charged to my Oyster PAYG card). Basically, the statement of my travel history (needed for an expenses claim) appears to show errors in the costs charged. For example,
- balance £8.40
- fare charged on entry to train station £6.00
- new balance £0.60 (!)
- fare credited on exit at destination £3.40
- new balance £4.00

So the fares charged appear correct as £6.00 – £3.40 = £2.60 which is the correct fare for that journey at that time. But my balance has reduced by £4.40.

This isn’t the first time this has happened, I simply have never bothered to follow it up before as it is a relatively small sum and assumed I was reading the statement incorrectly. Unfortunately, Oyster only provides an 8 week travel history so I can’t revisit the older ones to confirm. Has anyone else noticed this? If I’m not the only one affected, how much is this overcharging bringing in in total?

]]> By: Tom Papworth http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html#comment-109002 Tom Papworth Wed, 03 Mar 2010 11:07:29 +0000 http://www.libdemvoice.org/?p=18107#comment-109002 "Clearly some people are not using their Oystercard properly by not swiping the machines at the beginning and end of each journey meaning that they end up being charged a far higher fare..." ...except on the Trams, where you are not supposed to swipe out, but people do, unwittingly incurring the cost of the new journey that the Oyster system thinks they are commencing. A system where one is supposed to swipe in and out on some modes of transport (trains) but not on others (trams) seems designed to confuse. “Clearly some people are not using their Oystercard properly by not swiping the machines at the beginning and end of each journey meaning that they end up being charged a far higher fare…”

…except on the Trams, where you are not supposed to swipe out, but people do, unwittingly incurring the cost of the new journey that the Oyster system thinks they are commencing.

A system where one is supposed to swipe in and out on some modes of transport (trains) but not on others (trams) seems designed to confuse.

]]> By: Tom Papworth http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html#comment-109000 Tom Papworth Wed, 03 Mar 2010 10:44:58 +0000 http://www.libdemvoice.org/?p=18107#comment-109000 Tim, You don't have to register PAYG Oysters, but you do have to register season tickets. I sympathise with Andrew. However, having had my Oyster stolen just 24 hours after buying a £1400 annual season ticket, I'm rather glad that it was registered! Tim,

You don’t have to register PAYG Oysters, but you do have to register season tickets.

I sympathise with Andrew. However, having had my Oyster stolen just 24 hours after buying a £1400 annual season ticket, I’m rather glad that it was registered!

]]> By: Matthew Huntbach http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html#comment-108837 Matthew Huntbach Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:24:39 +0000 http://www.libdemvoice.org/?p=18107#comment-108837 Thanks Caroline, I had been meaning to write to you on this after my wife bought an oyster card when pay-as-you-go was extended to our tube-less part of London. The only reason I haven't is that our experience showed just so many things wrong. that it would takes days to write them all down and would result in a report I estimate about 50 pages long. Seriously. Right from the start, having never used the things before, we looked at the information, written and website, and could not find basic answers to basic questions. It was all so appallingly badly written. When we asked questions to various transport staff members, we inevitably got back as many different answers as people we asked. The oyster website is so amateurish and badly designed. I examine projects in this sort of thing, and there are basic errors in design which I would seriously criticise one of my students if it was in a project they had produced. TfL employ huge numbers of people on salaries of over £100,000 a year, yet they can't fund anyone to do simple fitness testing in this crucial website? I mean simple things like the fact that three different terms are used to mean registering the oyster card, you are urged to do it, yet it isn't at all obvious how you do it when you go to the website, and when you find out and try, it throws technical jargon and Americanisms at you which maybe some web-designer is familiar with but would mystify many customers. Thanks Caroline, I had been meaning to write to you on this after my wife bought an oyster card when pay-as-you-go was extended to our tube-less part of London. The only reason I haven’t is that our experience showed just so many things wrong. that it would takes days to write them all down and would result in a report I estimate about 50 pages long. Seriously.

Right from the start, having never used the things before, we looked at the information, written and website, and could not find basic answers to basic questions. It was all so appallingly badly written. When we asked questions to various transport staff members, we inevitably got back as many different answers as people we asked.

The oyster website is so amateurish and badly designed. I examine projects in this sort of thing, and there are basic errors in design which I would seriously criticise one of my students if it was in a project they had produced. TfL employ huge numbers of people on salaries of over £100,000 a year, yet they can’t fund anyone to do simple fitness testing in this crucial website? I mean simple things like the fact that three different terms are used to mean registering the oyster card, you are urged to do it, yet it isn’t at all obvious how you do it when you go to the website, and when you find out and try, it throws technical jargon and Americanisms at you which maybe some web-designer is familiar with but would mystify many customers.

]]> By: Dave Page http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html#comment-108793 Dave Page Sun, 28 Feb 2010 23:42:08 +0000 http://www.libdemvoice.org/?p=18107#comment-108793 Tim, even if you don't register your Oystercard it can be used to generate some very interesting travel statistics, which may well be enough to uniquely identify you. Swapping oystercards with other people randomly is a fun way to play! Tim, even if you don’t register your Oystercard it can be used to generate some very interesting travel statistics, which may well be enough to uniquely identify you. Swapping oystercards with other people randomly is a fun way to play!

]]> By: Tim Leunig http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html#comment-108697 Tim Leunig Sat, 27 Feb 2010 21:56:41 +0000 http://www.libdemvoice.org/?p=18107#comment-108697 Andrew - you don't have to register your oystercard if you don't want to Andrew – you don’t have to register your oystercard if you don’t want to

]]> By: Andrew Suffield http://www.libdemvoice.org/boris-johnson-oyster-travelcard-18107.html#comment-108676 Andrew Suffield Sat, 27 Feb 2010 13:00:27 +0000 http://www.libdemvoice.org/?p=18107#comment-108676 I'm still annoyed at the way Oyster doubles as a giant surveillance system. I’m still annoyed at the way Oyster doubles as a giant surveillance system.

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