Oyster Cards for Sheffield?

[Bago]

Where do you print this then? I have two Oyster cards. From the system in HK, and the one here in the UK. I found the one in UK hard to use because I got it from a train station. As a tourist to the city, I couldn't find simple information to understand where I can or cannot use my card. I just remember frustratingly having to go to a guy to pay a fee to get out of the train station when I was in a rush.

 

The only other intelligent system which calculates a sophicated pricing structure that I've encountered was from Cellnet mobile company years ago. I think they bodged up the job though even back then. I don't know how the Oyster card system works in London. I hope it literally does what it says and it is learnt from other intelligent systems in other industries.

 

The Yorkshire side of me always pondered whether I've been cheated out of my travel money that day.

[*_ash_*]

Roughly none at all.

I know because my SO has an oyster card and I don't. When we go together on the tube, I buy a ticket from the machine, she swipes. It might take me 10 seconds longer the first trip of the day, but after that and to actual journey times there is no difference at all.

 

I don't mean that it is your time that is saved. I meant that if everyone who gets on the bus doesn't have to make a cash transaction with the driver, then the bus would or could save minutes per stop, speeding up the buses journey time.

 

As pointed out somewhere in here - that buses used to run a lot quicker, this could be when we had conductors. But obvioulsy we're not going to ever see conductors again on buses.

[Cyclone]

True, it would make a difference with a bus, but it makes litle difference to a tube or a tram.

[Cyclone]

Where do you print this then? I have two Oyster cards. From the system in HK, and the one here in the UK. I found the one in UK hard to use because I got it from a train station. As a tourist to the city, I couldn't find simple information to understand where I can or cannot use my card. I just remember frustratingly having to go to a guy to pay a fee to get out of the train station when I was in a rush.

 

The only other intelligent system which calculates a sophicated pricing structure that I've encountered was from Cellnet mobile company years ago. I think they bodged up the job though even back then. I don't know how the Oyster card system works in London. I hope it literally does what it says and it is learnt from other intelligent systems in other industries.

 

The Yorkshire side of me always pondered whether I've been cheated out of my travel money that day.

 

As a tourist in london there was probably no point to getting an oyster card, just buying a day travel pass for the zones you need is easier.

[Plain Talker]

Did you let them know about this? They are still learning about these things. Another thing is that in tube stations the ticket office windows are way too high so you cannot get to talk to buy a ticket easily and the only part of the train system you have step/escalator free access on all stations is the DLR. I really think this should be improved. I have arthritis in my feet and some times find all the stairs painful. When I am having a lot of trouble I have to take a round about journey to use step free interchanges.

 

I did contact them, and also through the local disabled persons transport user group, here in sheffield, but I haven't heard a darn thing back from them.

 

I think it might be time to re-contact them, and jog their memory.

 

I agree that the glassed booths, where you get info/ buy tickets are exclusive of people with "communication handicaps" (blindness or deafness) too. not just people with physical disabilities.

[Plain Talker]

Ahh I see so for some journeys a fare may need to be paid or the council have to pay a fare so the ticket machine registers how many disabled/oap passes so they can manage how they bill the council. I guess that this is down to the fact that transport is not centrally regulated as it is in London.

 

That makes sense. I just remember before Oyster in London passes were just shown and did not have a ticket issued. A ticket was only issued if the person was required to pay a fare.

 

that's correct. the Passenger Transport Executive "reimburses" the bus companies a set (average?) fee, for every concesionary ticket they issue, be it child, mobility or OAP pass. I don't know what the current amount is. BAck when it was 20 or 25p I could have told you what it was.

[SpikyMike]

Well, I'm glad this got folk talking at least. i think one thing that is noticeable is that those people who have used the Oyster card (and my friends who live in London) seem to like it. I was initially sceptic but found that it did make using public transport in London a much more stress-free and cheaper experience. Not sure i understand the point about transport not being cheaper - the tube fares ARE half price and, as i said in the OP, my commute in London cost me £1, in Sheffield it costs me £1.60. Thats cheaper. You are right tho, the card i have is actually a debit rather than credit card, I was really tryin to describe the physical appearence of the card to give folk an idea.

The idea of a non-time limited card where you did indeed pay say £20 for 20 single journeys wouldn't be too hard to implement would it? would certainly be a step in the right direction. The flexibility of Oyster card top-up is also an attractive feature. For a lot of us £75 is a lot of money to shell out in one go, no matter how great value the Travelmaster may be. And I also found that over a long bus journey the stoppage time was seriously reduced. Anybody who's ever caught an 82 bus on a monday morning and had to wait at the stop at the top of Fargate while 30 people get on and buy their weekly travel pass whilst fumbling for change and student ID will appreciate how nice it was to have a bus that stopped for just a few seconds at each stop....

[Bago]

Well, whether it is cheaper or not since the implementation of the system, you gotta be fair and judge it by what it was before it was implemented.

 

It may be cheaper to compare the current fare in Sheffield, but you can't really compare it like that. Cos they are not the same journeys anyway. Maybe to your own transportation cost on a daily basis to/fro from work, it does seem cheaper to you. Anyway, the fare may be cheaper now for Londoners but it does not mean that once more people get to use it, the cost would not go back up since the system is implemented already. So therefore the transport company that uses it will get their money's worth.

 

I think there used to be something like a scratch card for public transports. I don't know whether Sheffield ever had those ones. i.e. scratch a day, it would become a day saver. Scratch a week, it becomes a weekly saver etc etc.

[Plain Talker]

as I understand it, it's a flat, £1.50 fare, for any journey, of any distance within Greater London. (thanks to deregulation not being in effect in London, thank you Margaret Thatcher)

 

Here in Sheffield, as we know, different fare stages cost different amounts, the only flat fees are the dayrider type tickets.

 

bago yes, First definitely have scratch tickets on the "firstweek" cards:- you scratch off the seven consecutive days. (you can't stagger the days, eg 1st, 3rd, 4th, 7th, etc:- it has to be 1-2-3-4- etc) and I am certain that the PTE do a countywide, multi-company/ train saver, but I'm not sure if that is the scratch card one.

[foxydebs]

The travelmasters are scratch off ones too