Post Wembley Event Touching In

[Parham Wood]

I attended the Springsteen concert at Wembley on Sunday. I started from Kew, went to Camden for the market and then from Mornington Crescent to Wembley Park via Euston overground. using my bank card. After the event at Wembley Park we were directed, along with 100s of others to the rear entrance for a southbound overground to Willesden Jnc and thence to Kew via overground (a quick route). At Wembley on the return the only touch in button I could see was a single machine at the bottom of the stairs leading to the platform which did not work. So I did not touch in along with everyone else. I could have gone to the main entrance but would have been the wrong side of the barrier. I touched a pink button at Willesden and touched out at Kew which said seek assistance on the first attempt but went green on the second. Checking my bank details I was charged £7.10 for the day which I reckon is correct (2 x £2.80, 1 x £1.50 via Willesden to Kew).

1. How did TFL work this out as I did not touch in at Wembley?
2. Were there any other machines on my route into Wembley Park that I missed - it was a massive crowd?
3. What would have happened to those other contactless or Oyster holders at Wembley when they got to their final destination as most would not have touched in at a pink button?
4. Why were not more machines available on the entrance route we used? I know it only occassionally there are large crowds but TFL muist know many will not be able to touch in and having only one machine is not enough for the crowds.

 

[island]

1. A pink machine will serve to touch you in if your card is not already touched in.
2. Probably not
3. They would be charged a maximum fare which would get resolved and auto-refunded within a few days; TfL knows when there are major events and will set the system to "assume" any unstated journeys within a timeframe after the event started at the event's local station.
4. Machines have to be installed permanently at a station and they cost money. The normal number of machines is more than sufficient 99% of the time.

 

[Parham Wood]

1. A pink machine will serve to touch you in if your card is not already touched in.

4. Machines have to be installed permanently at a station and they cost money. The normal number of machines is more than sufficient 99% of the time.

Thanks for the explanations.
1. Why did I get Seek Assistance initially at Kew? Also what are you supposed to do if there are no staff? I suppose check your account afterwards and then go through the hassle of claiming a refund if overcharged. I rarely use TFL so am very raw to all this.

4.Yes I realise this and provided TFL make allowance for this when charging it is ok but I wonder how many people will not get their payments adjusted!

At least full marks to TFL for managing the crowd efficiently. We did not have to queue as such but just following a slow moving crocodile to arrive on an empty platform with a train waiting to go.
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The barriers were open at Kew so it would have been possible to travel all the way from Wembley to Key without paying. I suppose there are quite a few "open" stations at this time of night. So a great opportunity to not pay if travelling between these but I suppose most will be coming from manned stations so will have to touch in. Are there many checks late at night to prevent this?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Thanks for the explanations.
1. Why did I get Seek Assistance initially at Kew?

Most probably you didn't quite touch the card to the reader properly and it didn't read properly.

Also what are you supposed to do if there are no staff? I suppose check your account afterwards and then go through the hassle of claiming a refund if overcharged. I rarely use TFL so am very raw to all this.

The latter, the barriers are not permitted to be closed if staff aren't there, so it becomes an admin issue to resolve later. In some cases it's done automatically.

 

[Tetchytyke]

The pink reader acts to touch you in if you haven't already touched in. TfL's system is quite advanced and they know when major events are on. They will be able to tell you touched out at Wembley and then had an unstarted journey about the time that there was a major event at Wembley. They automatically close unresolved journeys like this fairly often, without the card holder having to get in touch with them.

The seek assistance will simply have been because you didn't touch the card on the reader properly the first time. It'll be irrelevant to what else had happened earlier.

 

[londonbridge]

I was at the same gig with the same problem. I decided to try touching on the pink reader at Wilsden Junction and then tapped out at East Croydon. Was prepared for problems but my statement showed the return journey as Wilsden Junction to East Croydon for the appropriate fare. I did not previously realise that pink readers will start a journey (indeed the sign at Wilsden says "Do not touch in or out on this reader").

When I got off the train at Clapham Junction one half of a couple behind me was telling his partner that 'we need to find somewhere to tap in or we're gonna get stung'. On going down the stairs I then spotted that the barriers at the entrance/exit by platform 1 were open, so anyone who still hadn't swiped could have just walked through and then tapped in coming back into the station.

Edit. Think the OP may be getting their station names confused as they mention "Wembley Park" which is served by the Jubilee line and not by London Overground. Presumably they mean Wembley Central which is where the problems occurred.

 

[Parham Wood]

Edit. Think the OP may be getting their station names confused as they mention "Wembley Park" which is served by the Jubilee line and not by London Overground. Presumably they mean Wembley Central which is where the problems occurred.

Thanks it would have been Central. Like you posted, those without a ticket would have got a free ride to Kew as the barriers were all open if they were foolish enough to try. Oh and thanks to other respondents for their info.