Southern (GTR) - Southern Rolling out of Smartcards - F

Southern (GTR) - F

Southern Rolling out of Smartcards

Southern was criticised in January 2007 for not wishing to introduce Oyster Pay As You Go on its London routes, stating that it was not financially viable. In 2007 Southern introduced Oyster on its Watford Junction to Clapham Junction route, and the company later agreed in principle to the introduction of Oyster across its network, but did not give any firm timescale, managing director Chris Burchell saying

"There are still a number of outstanding issues that need to be discussed with TfL, but we do not believe these will prevent us making PAYG a reality on our network. We look forward to discussions with TfL on how we can make this happen as soon as possible for our passengers."

In its successful franchise bid in 2009, Southern said it was committed to rolling out Oyster Pay As You Go in the London area, but also that such a move was subject to industry agreement.

Since 2 January 2010, Oyster Pay As You Go has been valid on all its London routes, along with most other train services in the London area. In addition, Oyster is valid on Southern services beyond the Greater London boundary as far as Epsom, Epsom Downs, Tattenham Corner, Upper Warlingham, Caterham and Gatwick Airport.

Southern The Key Card

In 2012, Southern became the first rail company in England to use the ITSO card on its network. The Key is a smartcard similar to Transport for London's Oyster card. Tickets of various types can be purchased for the smartcard at ticket vending machines across the majority of the GTR network, except within Oyster-capable travel areas, as well as online (season tickets only).

Three forms of Key exist: child, adult, and staff.
All child smartcards need a photograph, which is printed onto the card, as well as proof of age while registering.
The Key can be de-activated and the tickets transferred to a new card sent out in the post if the smartcard is reported as lost, stolen or faulty.
Staff smartcards are only issued to employees of GTR, and offer unlimited travel across all of GTR's network.

The Key also has a pay-as-you-go feature called keyGo. With this, customers can tap in and out freely within the keyGo area, and the cheapest combination of tickets from the entire day's taps are automatically calculated at the end of the railway day and automatically charged to a linked payment card.

keyGo is also valid on Brighton & Hove buses and Metrobus services within certain areas. Bus journeys are charged at the single, day zonal, day network or Plusbus rates as appropriate.

The Key can be used on all National Rail services where tickets are available for purchase on smartcards.

Southern (Govia Thameslink Railway) Overview

Southern (GTR) Franchise(s):

Network SouthCentral

26 August 2001 – 24 May 2003

South Central

25 May 2003 – 19 September 2009

Gatwick Express

22 June 2008 – 19 September 2009

South Central (incl Gatwick Express)

20 September 2009 – 25 July 2015

Part of Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern

26 July 2015 – 1 April 2028

Southern (GTR) Main Region(s): Greater London, South East England

Southern (GTR) Other Region(s): East of England

Southern (GTR) Fleet Size:

17 Class 171 Turbostar sets

214 Class 377 Electrostar sets

4 Class 387 Electrostar sets

Southern (GTR) Stations Called At: 213

Southern (GTR) Stations Operated: 156

Southern (GTR) Parent Company: Govia Thameslink Railway

Southern (GTR) Reporting Mark: SN

Southern (GTR) Technical Track Gauge: 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

Southern (GTR) Electrification: 750 V DC third rail

25 kV 50 Hz AC OHLE

Southern (GTR) Length: 666.3 km (414.0 mi)

Rail Holidays
Rail Vacations

Luxury Trains
Luxury Tours

International Trains
International Tours