Don’t cut the card!
Transport for London could be close to a decision on whether to withdraw the Day Travelcard, and we’re urging them – and train operators – to rethink.
London’s extraordinary travel network is the envy of Britain, and the envy of the world. A network of 272 tube stations, 675 bus routes with 19,000 bus stops, eight piers and a tram network – brought together with a single ticketing solution moving millions every day. It’s a model that other City Regions are desperate to emulate. But for millions outside of the capital, this utopic offering could be about to get substantially more expensive.
Transport for London (TfL) are in discussions currently to remove the Day Travelcard — their integrated paper ticket offering that allows those living beyond the city limits easy access to the network — citing necessary savings as a result of government funding deals following the COVID-19 pandemic.
We’re actively pressing all sides to reach an agreement, but we’re also urging our supporters to back our Don’t Cut the Card campaign.
What is the Day Travelcard offer?
The Day Travelcard is a one stop shop for visitors and families looking to travel the capital on all modes of public transport – tickets are paid for at the point of purchase, allowing unlimited travel throughout the day and evening. Passengers can purchase single Day Travelcards, but also available are:
- Group Day Travelcards: for groups of ten or more – designed specifically for school groups and tourists.
- Family Travelcard: for family groups of up to two adults and four children.
Why fight for the Travelcard?
The cost of rail is already sky high – getting from A to B should not be as expensive as it is, not least because of the cost-of-living and environmental crises that are being acutely felt across Britain. But losing the Day Travelcard would make visiting London even less affordable for individuals and families alike. So far many of our supporters have told us why they want the travelcard to stay and why it will be such an inconvenience to them if it goes.
“I have a Disabled Person’s Railcard which entitles me to 34 per cent off the rail fare for both me and another person travelling with me. This discount for me plus companion currently includes one day travelcards as well as conventional train tickets. The discount can be applied to a PAYG Oyster Card, but 1) this is a faff and 2) the discount only applies to the holder, not to the companion. So, if there’s two of you going to London, the second person will pay much more for travel within London. The discount cannot be applied to contactless, even for the cardholder. Travelling from our home to and around London is complicated enough. We don’t want an extra layer added to it. Transport should be made more integrated, not less.”
Jim, Hampshire
“I am a pensioner who has to travel from Northampton to Sutton in Greater London on a weekly basis to visit a vulnerable friend. The withdrawal of the Travelcard will mean I will have to drive instead which at the age of 69 won’t be ideal.”
Paul, Northampton
“I regularly travel to London with my two daughters using the travel card, it is a cheap and easy way to visit the capital. If I cannot use a Travelcard I would need three different bank cards or Oyster cards for all of us to use and would also be charged at an adult rate. If this were to happen, we would stop using the train.”
Claire, Berkshire
We did some analysis on some of the busiest routes into London Stations to find out how individuals and families could be affected if the Travel Card is lost.
For individuals:
| Departure Station | London Station | Current off-peak cost (using a Travelcard) | Future off-peak cost (without a Travelcard) | Off-peak difference (%) | Off-peak difference (£) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sevenoaks | Charing Cross | £19.80 | £23.30 | 18% | £3.50 |
| Gravesend | Charing Cross | £20.40 | £23.90 | 17% | £3.50 |
| Milton Keynes | Euston | £28.30 | £31.20 | 10% | £2.90 |
| Chelmsford | Liverpool Street | £33.50 | £33.10 | -1% | -£0.40 |
| Bishop's Stortford | Liverpool Street | £32.00 | £32.90 | 3% | £0.90 |
| High Wycombe | Marylebone | £28.90 | £33.10 | 15% | £4.20 |
| Reading | Paddington | £29.60 | £32.10 | 8% | £2.50 |
| St Albans City | St Pancras | £25.80 | £26.30 | 2% | £0.50 |
| Brighton | Victoria | £28.60 | £29.70 | 4% | £1.10 |
| Lewes | Victoria | £40.90 | £43.70 | 7% | £2.80 |
| Guildford | Waterloo | £32.20 | £32.90 | 2% | £0.70 |
| Woking | Waterloo | £29.10 | £29.60 | 2% | £0.50 |
For families:
| Departure Station | London Station | Current off-peak cost (using a Travelcard) | Future off-peak cost (without a Travelcard) | Off-peak difference (%) | Off-peak difference (£) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sevenoaks | Charing Cross | £49.05 | £50.60 | 3% | £1.55 |
| Gravesend | Charing Cross | £50.55 | £51.80 | 2% | £1.25 |
| Milton Keynes | Euston | £55.80 | £77.85 | 40% | £22.05 |
| Chelmsford | Liverpool Street | £71.00 | £81.60 | 15% | £10.60 |
| Bishop's Stortford | Liverpool Street | £68.00 | £81.05 | 19% | £13.05 |
| High Wycombe | Marylebone | £54.00 | £81.60 | 51% | £27.60 |
| Reading | Paddington | £61.40 | £79.00 | 29% | £17.60 |
| St Albans City | St Pancras | £45.50 | £51.60 | 13% | £6.10 |
| Brighton | Victoria | £58.55 | £64.35 | 10% | £5.80 |
| Lewes | Victoria | £60.35 | £66.15 | 10% | £5.80 |
| Guildford | Waterloo | £79.85 | £81.05 | 2% | £1.20 |
| Woking | Waterloo | £72.15 | £72.80 | 1% | £0.65 |
These expected rises, combined with a potential eight per cent rise in national rail fares next year, make grim reading for families in particular where the rises will be most evident.
But let’s imagine for a moment that there were no price disparities between the Travelcard and the use of an off-peak ticket combined with contactless payments or an Oyster Card. For the individual, if that were true, it would make contactless payment methods as attractive as the Travelcard — but families would still find it difficult to get the family together for a trip on the train. According to official figures from the Rail Delivery Group, only half of all travelcards were for full-fare paying adults – kids stand to lose the most.
According to TfL, the only way for children outside London to receive their qualified discount on TfL services is to create an account on TfL’s website, go through the application for the Zip Card and wait for their application to be processed, approved and for the card to be sent out to them. This needs to be applied for well in advance of trips, and is – according to official reports likely to ‘increase the cost and inconvenience of child travel’ and could be ‘a barrier to travel…particularly for families with several children, including overseas visitors.’ Who has the time to do all of this?
The reading is even worse for groups of schoolchildren and student groups who – faced with the removal of the group discounted card – face ‘a similarly negative impact’.
The negative impacts of the Travelcard’s withdrawal continue, with disabled passenger groups complaining about the inflexibility of contactless payments refunding timed out travel (TfL provide a maximum time limit for journeys to curb fare evasion – often exceeded by disabled customers needing to use ramps or take breaks) and the ease of using the Day Travelcard.
But don’t just take our word for it, a cross-party consensus of MPs and Councils are voicing their concerns with these proposals.
If the Travelcard matters to you or someone you know, please take one of our campaign actions and tell the Mayor of London and TfL: ‘Don’t cut the card!’.
