Elizabeth Line / Tap to Pay

[ajhard]

Hi there - I have bought a ticket and now realised I’m not sure how to use it!!

I have a ticket from Maidenhead to Paddington and am then going on to Canary Wharf (expecting to pay that part on contactless). However I was planning to get an Elizabeth Line train straight through…how would I tap in at Paddington? Or is tapping out at Canary Wharf enough?

Thx

 

[Hadders]

You don't need a separate ticket between Maidenhead and Paddington. Simply touch in at Maidenhead and out at Canary Wharf.

If you have a traditional ticket between Maidenhead and Paddington you will need to exit at Paddington with your traditional ticket and immediately re-enter so you can touch-in with Oyster or contactless.

 

[ajhard]

You don't need a separate ticket between Maidenhead and Paddington. Simply touch in at Maidenhead and out at Canary Wharf.

If you have a traditional ticket between Maidenhead and Paddington you will need to exit at Paddington and immediately re-enter so you can touch-in.

Apologies - I should have been more specific. I am actually travelling from Didcot - splitting the journey at Maidenhead. To further complicate, I bought the ticket via Uber as they offer 10% off and they didn’t seem to offer a fare to CW.

So do I need to go to the barrier and come back in again - assume there aren’t validators on the platform?

If so it will kind of defeat the object of getting a through train from Reading, and I might as well stick to GWR to Paddington for a few £ more…

 

[Hadders]

What exact tickets do you hold?

There are no validators on the Elizabeth Line platforms at Paddington.

 

[ajhard]

I have an Anytime day return from Didcot to Maidenhead and an Anytime day return from Maidenhead to Paddington. I went GWR Didcot to Reading then on to Elizabeth Line (stopping at Maidenhead), which goes through to CW, without thinking about how to begin my journey at Paddington. I think I’ll have to get off and then get the next train…

 

[Hadders]

Yes, you'll need to step back a train at Paddington so you can touch-in.

You can't buy a traditional ticket specifically to Canary Wharf. You need a ticket with a destination of London Underground and DLR Zones 1-2

 

[JonathanH]

I think I’ll have to get off and then get the next train…

Or board a train at Didcot that stops at Maidenhead, and change at Paddington which may be quicker overall.

 

[ajhard]

Ah ok - schoolboy error, so I needed the 2nd ticket to be Maidenhead to Zones 1-2 then I’d be laughing.

Live & learn.

Thanks both!

 

[fandroid]

In future, you could get a Didcot to Reading return ticket, and tap in with contactless at Reading, tapping out at Canary Wharf. Same, but in reverse, back to Reading. It shouldn't cost any more, and depending on when you leave Canary Wharf, it could cost less. I suspect that there aren't any validators other than on the gates at Reading. Given that the EL trains leave from high number platforms, it might be quickest to go to the north-side gateline there, rather than the town-side ones.

 

[ajhard]

How would I find out the fare for Reading - Canary Wharf using contactless? Is that a national rail fare, and how is it calculated single / return etc?

 

[Hadders]

How would I find out the fare for Reading - Canary Wharf using contactless? Is that a national rail fare, and how is it calculated single / return etc?

All contactless fares are singles and whether they are peak or off-peak depends on the touch-in time. The TfL website has a single fare finder but @MikeWh has also built his own version:

Fare Finder – Oyster Fares Central

oysterfares.com

If it was me I wouldn't get the Elizabeth Line all the way from Reading to Canary Wharf. I'd get a fast GWR train from Reading to Paddington and join the Elizabeth Line there. It would be a much faster journey overall. GWR accept contactless between Reading and Paddington and even though you'd need to touch-out on exiting the GWR platforms and touch-in when entering the Elizabeth Line the system would automatically join it up into one journey.

 

[londonbridge]

TFL single fare finder has it as £31 peak or £14.80 off peak. Same price regardless of whether you set the destination as Canary Wharf, Canary Wharf Underground or Canary Wharf DLR.

The avoiding zone 1 fare is £26.40 peak or £11.40 off peak, going via Ealing Broadway, Shepherds Bush, Willesden Junction and Stratford.

 

[miklcct]

TFL single fare finder has it as £31 peak or £14.80 off peak. Same price regardless of whether you set the destination as Canary Wharf, Canary Wharf Underground or Canary Wharf DLR.

The avoiding zone 1 fare is £26.40 peak or £11.40 off peak, going via Ealing Broadway, Shepherds Bush, Willesden Junction and Stratford.

The peak contactless fare from Reading to Paddington or beyond is unreasonably expensive compared to fares from e.g. Twyford or Maidenhead. For example, Twyford to Canary Wharf is £19.90 peak and £12.10 off-peak while Reading to Canary Wharf is £31.00 peak and £14.80 off-peak.

Therefore, as the OP needs a change and to tap in, I strongly suggest that the change to be Twyford or beyond in order to avoid the unreasonably expensive PAYG fare from Reading if travelling during peak hours.

 

[MikeWh]

The peak contactless fare from Reading to Paddington or beyond is unreasonably expensive compared to fares from e.g. Twyford or Maidenhead. For example, Twyford to Canary Wharf is £19.90 peak and £12.10 off-peak while Reading to Canary Wharf is £31.00 peak and £14.80 off-peak.

Therefore, as the OP needs a change and to tap in, I strongly suggest that the change to be Twyford or beyond in order to avoid the unreasonably expensive PAYG fare from Reading if travelling during peak hours.

It's not unreasonably expensive given that there are loads of fast trains taking just 20 minutes or so. If using the Elizabeth line all the way then it is definitely worth splitting.