IT’S BEEN the way to see London for Reading and Wokingham residents for years, but it could be coming to an end.
Transport for London (TfL) is consulting on whether to stop one day travelcards that allow passengers to use National Rail, London Underground and London Buses for a fixed price.
It means that one ticket lets people get on a national rail train to Paddington or Waterloo and then immediately go and see the sights of the big city, access the West End or go shopping and then return home without worrying about which ticket goes for which service, or whether there is enough change to give the bus conductor.
Under the plans, TfL would withdraw from the daily Travelcard Agreement in a bid to generate between £500m and £1 billion additional revenue per year. However, weekly and other season ticket Travelcards will remain operational thanks to additional funding provided by the London mayor Sadiq Khan.
At the moment, the day travelcard give unlimited travel on TfL services, including bus, Tube, Tram, Docklands Light Railway, London Underground, London Overground and Elizabeth line, and National Rail services in London, and can also be used to get one third off River Services fares.
By stopping this arrangement, it would also end group day travelcards, weekend travelcards, the London Family travelcard.
Fares would change to pay-as-you-go fares using contactless or Oyster cards, or buying single and return paper tickets.
However, these fares are capped at £21.20 for peak fares or £14.90 for off-peak fares, and £106.10 for weekly fares.
It would still make travel around London more expensive. Off-peak train returns are £24, added to TfL’s daily cap of £21.20, means a day’s travel around the capital at off-peak times would be £45.20. Currently, a travelcard is £29.60 – this would be an increase of £15.60 per day.
The Mayor of London is currently carrying out an impact assessment on the changes, with an engagement with key stakeholders running until May 23.
An online form allows people to ask questions about the plans.
A TfL spokesperson said: “As required by conditions of the government’s funding settlements, TfL is considering proposals to generate additional income. One of these proposals is withdrawal from elements of the Travelcard Agreement, such as TfL’s acceptance of Day Travelcards.
“TfL is in the process of contacting stakeholders to help inform this work.”
The consultation can be seen at: https://haveyoursay.tfl.gov.uk/travelcards
