Annual Travelcard Oyster Vs Paper

[tangoman]

Hi, I've been reading for a while but first post, so here goes...

Soon I need to renew my annual london travel card, and for the last couple of years I've gone for Oyster as I'm mostly using it on the underground.

However thanks to other posts on this forum i've discovered "boundary zone" tickets (also not forgetting the gold card benifits too!) makes quite a difference to tickets to further out locations.

My question is this:

do _all_ train operators and trains accept a boundary ticket if the travelcard is on oyster, or is it better to get the paper version. (I'm wondering specifically about GWR to cornwall and greater anglia to Colchester on the intercity trains, where you might not expect the train manager to have an oyster reader and you would have no way to prove you had a travel card)

Also, are there any other situations where the paper and oyster have different validity?

Many thanks if you can help

James.

 

[cool110]

When you buy an annual Travelcard on Oyster you'll be issued with a Gold Record Card to prove what your Travalcard covers and therefore your entitlement to buy Gold Card discounted tickets.

 

[Tetchytyke]

As cool110 says, when you buy an annual Travelcard on Oyster they'll send you a Gold Record Card, which is your proof that you have a gold card, and has the added bonus of proving what zones your Travelcard is for.

It's easier to replace a lost/stolen Oyster than it is a paper ticket, and if most of your travel is within the Oyster area then extension tickets on Oyster PAYG tend to be cheaper than extension tickets on paper (e.g. if your Travelcard is Z1234, and you're going to Z6, a PAYG extension will be cheaper than a paper ticket Z56).

 

[island]

Whilst as far as the official conditions go, Oyster Travelcards have the exact same validity as the equivalent paper tickets, my experience has been that there is difficulty using them at Paddington plats 2-5, Euston plats 1-7/12-19, and St Pancras plats 1-4. In each case the staff member controlling access to and from the platforms makes a sweeping and invalid statement about how GWR/VTWC/EMT does not accept Oyster. It can be annoying although usually doesn't result in refusal of travel.

 

[button_boxer]

Whilst as far as the official conditions go, Oyster Travelcards have the exact same validity as the equivalent paper tickets, my experience has been that there is difficulty using them at Paddington plats 2-5, Euston plats 1-7/12-19, and St Pancras plats 1-4. In each case the staff member controlling access to and from the platforms makes a sweeping and invalid statement about how GWR/VTWC/EMT does not accept Oyster. It can be annoying although usually doesn't result in refusal of travel.

And as of now, the "Gatwick Express" platforms at Victoria will be problematic too.

 

[Tetchytyke]

And as of now, the "Gatwick Express" platforms at Victoria will be problematic too.

Indeed they will, although given the fares advice says "all Travelcards" it'll be interesting to see if paper ticket holders will be able to get through the barriers.

My advice to the OP would be paper for a Z16 or Z19 Travelcard and Oyster for any other Travelcard. If your extension travel is outside the zones a paper ticket is a bit easier to handle, if your extension travel is within the zones then paper is massively more expensive than Oyster.

 

[talldave]

Indeed they will, although given the fares advice says "all Travelcards" it'll be interesting to see if paper ticket holders will be able to get through the barriers.

My advice to the OP would be paper for a Z16 or Z19 Travelcard and Oyster for any other Travelcard. If your extension travel is outside the zones a paper ticket is a bit easier to handle, if your extension travel is within the zones then paper is massively more expensive than Oyster.

Paper Travelcards have always opened the 13/14 barriers.