Rail firms roll out new ‘tap in and out’ smartcards
Rail customers in the South West will soon be able to tap in and out to access rail services across the West of England.
The GWR touch smartcard will be available to use across the west of England area and valid on GWR, Cross Country and Transport for Wales rail services within the payas-you-go boundary.
With the service starting late August, GWR touch smartcards are available now and the company will let customers know when they can start using them.
To pre-order a free smartcard and ensure you get the best value on the day of travel:
register for an account or log in if
you already have one;
■ go to ‘Manage smartcards’ within your account and choose ‘Apply for a smartcard’ from the drop-down menu;
■ fill out the form and submit your order;
■ you should usually receive your
free smartcard within five working days.
Train tickets and season tickets can also be stored on your smartcard with pay-as-you-go, except Flexi Season tickets. GWR advises that a Flexi Season ticket is not used in combination with pay-as-you-go and customers should obtain a separate smartcard for these products.
“We’re really excited about the impending customer launch of the scheme and the future opportunities it provides in other areas and incorporating other modes of transport,” said Lee Edworthy from GWR.
Dan Norris, the mayor of the West of England said he thought that the pay-as-you-go fares should one day link with the contactless fares on the West of England buses, although it has been stressed that this is an aspiration rather than anything concrete right now.
“If we are going to reach our really ambitious net-zero-by-2030 target, we need to make it as easy and affordable as possible for West of Englanders to use public transport,” he said.
“This will help us cut congestion, improve road safety and begin to clean up our air too.
“With money tight it’s good to know you’ll always be charged the best value walk-up, flexible fare.
“This is an important first step and I look forward to working with GWR on further future improvements to make it easier to top up, to integrate with other types of public transport and one day to be able to use debit cards to tap in.”
At the end of each day, GWR will analyse all of a customer’s entry and exit taps and apply the most appropriate fare for the journeys they made.
The fare will be based upon the ticket types available on the day and the time they travelled on services.
It will then charge the best value walk-up, flexible fares as available on Gwr.com made up of Standard Class Anytime, Off-peak and Superoff-peak Day Single, and Day Return Fares.
Customers can register now at: www.gwr.com/your-tickets/ choosing-your-ticket/smart-tickets/ touch/payg