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Oyster card will cut Thames boat commuter fares
Katharine Barney, Evening Standard06.04.09
COMMUTERS will be able to use Oyster cards on river boats from November, it was revealed today.
The announcement by Boris Johnson is part of measures to make travelling on the Thames more practical - including a new service from London Bridge to Canary Wharf.
The Thames Clipper will run a 10-minute shuttle service during morning and evening rush hours.
Pre-paid Oyster card holders will receive a third off, meaning a single journey is expected to cost £3.35.
The Mayor says he wants more operators to provide a similar scheme so river transport can be dramatically improved in time for the 2012 Olympics.
Transport for London has also agreed £1.5million funding for an extension of Tower Pier by 2011 to relieve congestion.
London's pier owners, boat operators, councils and Transport for London have agreed to a "river concordat", which commits them to improve ticketing, piers and passenger information.
Mr Johnson said: "With the right mixture of investment and imagination, river services can become a truly integral, as well as an extremely pleasant, part of the capital's transport network. Oysterising the Thames as well as providing clearer signage will make it much easier for Londoners to travel on the river.
"The Thames is also a vital part of the 2012 transport strategy and with the Games now so close the members of the concordat fully realise the importance of making an Olympic effort to get our services and piers up to scratch.
"When the world comes to London I want visitors to be able to glory in the beauty of our great waterway as they whiz between the centre of the capital and Olympic venues at Greenwich."
More than 30 organisations have signed up to the agreement and promised to concentrate on improving signage at piers and railway stations to make it clear it could be easier to walk to the pier and take a boat rather than the Tube.
Mr Johnson said he will encourage extensions of many of the 33 piers, starting in central London, then moving east and west.
Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor's director of transport policy and chair of the Concordat Group, said: "This provides a real opportunity to finally deliver the river services that our great city deserves."
He said he wanted the services to carry 7.5million by 2012.
Sean Collins, managing director, Thames Clippers, said: "Thames Clippers carried 2.7 million passengers in 2008, a 388 per cent increase over a two-year period as a result of our investment in six fast ferries.
"I believe the areas that the concordat focuses on , especially the Oyster card, will increase demand, providing Londoners and visitors with the high standard of service they deserve and to showcase this to the world in 2012."
Reader views (12)
Joinging the river service onto the London Transport network is a great idea. I travelled on it this morning to work as parrt of the free service during the RMT strikes. It was a great experience and i reccommend it to everyone.
I agree that it should be included in the seasonal travelcards at no extra cost and we should encourage more people to use it. It's quick and simple and a much better journey then any bus, tube or train.
However, the river Thames is limited in size and space and we want to keep the river service efficient and "uncongested". Let's not go crazy on this one and bring the river to a stand still with the congestion like the rest of London. Part of the reason i enjoyed the the journey this morning was due to getting away from the congestion. Otherwise i would have been better off jumping on a bus. Let's keep it practicle but still encourage more people to make use of it.
Good Job Boris. Thanks!
- Ifty, London
This is an effective and simple way of taking pressure off the central commuter run, unless I am miss-informed an oyster system is now able to incorporate into other systems without too much trouble, so it is up to TFL to invest in the boats, piers & delivery of the thames service. If it's in place and a viable alternative it will be used by lots of central workers. Another excuse by City Hall, come on people, have you been to the larger city's of Europe lately and seen their river services, of course you have, we paid for you to go.
- Ben, Putney, London
I live in Wapping and work in Waterloo - both on the river. I really should be able to travel to work by river bus but there are no piers between Canary Wharf and Tower pier - about a two-mile stretch of river. With the east London line closed until next year - why no pier at Wapping? I have written to Thames Clippers about this several times but have received no response. If Clippers want to provide a proper service for Londoners, rather than tourists, the route should include many more piers, up to Putney etc and, as other people have said, trips should be included in the price of an Oyster card. Oh -and it should be operated by London Transport not a private enterprise.
- Potential River Commuter, Wapping, London
At last, a bit of joined -up thinking! How about a lot of shuttle ferries across the river below Tower Bridge as well?
- Mdj E10, london uk
Am I missing something here? Travelcard holders already receive a third off these fares. When Am I going to be able to use my travelcard on these services without paying any extra? Now that would really be something for Boris to crow about! I'm not impressed.
- Stephen, London
Bob, Cheam:
Careful mate - I hope 'Bob' is a pseudonym - the CIA/MI5 are probably monitoring your every move on this website and tracking your subservice comments as we speak. They'll probably then pass them to TfL who as we all know, are merely a front organisation for al-Qaeda!
- Liberal And Proud, London, UK
Just in time for winter. Brilliant
- Investment Banker, London
I don't know the facts on this but I don't understand why Thames river boats can't be run at the same price as Tube journeys with Oyster. Surely running boats on the river is cheaper than maintaining the Tube with it's tunnels, tracks, junctions/points, escalators and lifts etc
- Mcw, London
Presumably it will work in the same fashion as the Tube and Buses where the Oyster Card users will be subsided by those who don't want their every movement traced and will have to pay double the old fare?
- Bob, Cheam
I'd love to try it out at weekends for pleasure, but it certainly is a bit pricey if you start near Putney and want to go to Greenwich.
- Martin, Teddington
In addition to travelcard users a discount is also already available to holders of freedom passes.
- Melvyn Windebank, Canvey Island, Essex
You already get a third off if you have a Travelcard on your Oyster card.
It's a nice way to travel, but it's expensive compared to Bus and Tube.
- Cap, London
