08.01.16
Oyster reaches Gatwick, as shown on major new TfL rail map
TfL has officially extended Oyster card ‘pay as you go’ and contactless accessibility to Gatwick Airport, as reflecting in its latest and largest ever London rail map.
Passengers will be able to use their smartcards between Merstham and Gatwick Airport, both of which have been included in the rail map for the first time, from 11 January, and on Gatwick Express between Victoria and the airport.
Click on the map to expand it in a new window.
Rail minister Claire Perry MP first announced this extension in November last year, saying: “Our plan for passengers is to build a 21st century railway that provides better journeys for all, and improved ticketing is a vital part of that customer experience.
“This extension of Oyster and contactless embraces some of the latest technology, making journeys easier for customers, offering them a vastly more convenient option. As we undertake the biggest rail modernisation since the Victorian era, improving London to Gatwick by rail is another step to a modern railway that strengthens the economy.”
The new map now delineates the full extent of the Oyster sprawl, ringing around the city’s nine zones in a 50-mile diameter reaching far beyond the M25. Oyster cannot, however, be used to travel on Heathrow Express.
The capital’s updated map also features 14 heavy rail services stitching between the original Tube lines, as well as indicates the London Trams route between Wimbledon and New Addington, Beckenham Junction and Elmers End.
As previously revealed by RTM, the map also features a newly created Zone 2/3, which rezoned eight stations originally situated in Zone 3 in order to make travel cheaper for passengers travelling in either direction.