Route Validators (Pink Readers)
The network of rail services across London often offers a choice of routes when deciding how to get from A to B. Usually the zones covered will be the same in all cases, but there are times when a particular route might avoid, for example, zone 1 altogether. If there are two routes where both can be acomplished without needing to touch out and back in again the system needs a way to tell which one has been used. To this end there are a number of special pink readers at stations where you would change trains when using the route that avoids zone 1. All you need to do is touch your Oystercard on one of the pink readers and the system will register that you’ve taken the cheaper route.
The pink route validators are located at the following stations:
- Blackhorse Road
- Canada Water
- Gospel Oak
- Gunnersbury
- Highbury & Islington
- Kensington (Olympia)
- Rayners Lane
- Richmond
- Stratford
- West Brompton
- Whitechapel
- Willesden Junction
- Wimbledon
Note: Some journeys have been defined as requiring travel via Zone 1 and will be charged accordingly, irrespective of the route taken.
Missing Route Validator
Notwithstanding the note above, we believe that there has been a serious oversight in not installing a route validator at Surrey Quays station on the newly reopened East London Line. Walking between New Cross and New Cross Gate has long been a recognised route between south east and south London. Now that East London Line trains are extended to West Croydon and Crystal Palace it is logical to replace the walk with a train from New Cross to Surrey Quays.
However, if you don’t touch out and in again at the New Cross stations the Oyster system assumes you have travelled via London Bridge, where all interchanges can be made via the footbridge without touching out or in. It cannot tell the difference between using the footbridge at London Bridge and using the footbridge at Surrey Quays. Therefore it will overcharge all journeys made via Surrey Quays by the difference between including zone 1 or not including zone 1. For a journey starting or finishing in zone 6 that is a difference of £1.70 peak or £1 off-peak per journey.
This page updated 20 February 2011.
35 Responses
Do you know what happens if I do something odd, like Gloucester Rd to Highbury and Islington via Gunnesbury? (PAYG) Do I get charged Z1-4 single or only Z1-Z2?
Similar example: Wembley Park to Holland Park via Rayners Lane and Ealing Bdy- Z1-4 or Z1-5?
Hi B,
I don’t know what happens if you touch on pink validators on a longer route. It may well charge you the higher fare. If you don’t touch the validators then you may well run the risk of exceeding the maximum journey time which will result in two unresolved journeys, each deducting a maximum fare.
If you are making unusual journeys with a lot of riding around without touching out and in my advice would be to buy a paper travelcard.
If TfL are going to make assumptions about the journey you must have taken from A to B, isn’t it reasonable to just assume you made the cheapest one, rather than having these new pink readers to prove that you did?
Like for example, they assume you took a more expensive route going S to SE London via (zone 1) london bridge when its quicker and cheaper to change in zone 2. But if you’re travelling within zone 1, e.g. london bridge to victoria/Pimlico, they surely won’t assume you went via Stockwell in zone 2, and charge you extra? i.e. they don’t make you touch a pink reader at Green Park to prove you stayed in zone 1.
So what’s the difference, and why don’t they assume cheapest route like I thought they always had done!? Unless I’m missing something, sounds like a bit of a scam for the unwary? (Thanks also while I’m at it, for a great and very infomative site!)
Hi Greg,
London Bridge to Victoria via Stockwell. That’s an interesting option. If you did that then you would only get charged a zone 1 fare so you’d be lucky.
For every route they try to work out what the quickest way is. Usually that will involve zone 1. Certainly my experience of Crayford to Norwood Junction is that via London Bridge is always the quickest way. Next quickest is walking between New Cross and New Cross Gate followed by Overground via Surrey Quays. If my destination was somewhere like Sydenham then via London Bridge wouldn’t be quite so fast, but I’d still expect it to be the quickest.
They don’t assume the cheapest route because they’d lose too much money as most people will go via zone 1.
Thanks for the comment and I’m pleased you like the site.
Well I returned to Woolwich Arsenal this afternoon and to my surprise the pink validator has gone, replaced by another entry/exit validator. I’m surprised mainly because I don’t think many people will be joining the DLR there who haven’t already been using Oyster on the SET journey. Anyway, page is edited to remove that entry.
There seems to be a missing route validator on the newly re-opened platform 1 at Highbury and Islington. Alighting from the last car of the train from the East London line and heading for the tube/FCC platforms, there doesn’t seem to be one at all, unless you go down to platform 2/3. If there is one, surely it would be better located where passengers could actually see it. But then, on, say, a Shoreditch High Street – Palmers Green journey, does not touching a route validator mean I’ll be overcharged?
Hi Philip,
As Shoreditch High Street is in zone 1, touching on a pink validator is unlikely to make any difference to the fare. Platform 1 is only used by ELL trains so there should be no confusion over which route has been taken. Unless I’m missing something, of course?
I often travel West Ham to Canonbury via Stratford. I have seen these pink validators, but not used them. Now the East London Line is open, I could go via Whitechapel, but by the looks of things it would be via Zone 1 at Shoreditch. As far as I remember, I have always been charged £1.30, but does that now mean I have to touch on the pink thing as there is now an alternative route via zone 1?
Hi Elizabeth,
The short answer is “yes”. If you use the single fare finder on the TfL website then it quotes the fare for that journey as £2.50/£2.90. If you click on the Alternative fares button it shows the via Stratford option as £1.30/£1.40 with the instruction that you must touch on the pink route validator at Stratford to get that fare.
Hope that helps.
hi
I travel from brockley and often head out toward hampton court via clapham junction. i’m so confused about the best route and what I do regarding oyster. is there a via point reader at clapham?
and what if I’m heading north say to camden, do I need to get out and validate to say I’m going via the east london train or will it assume that I went to london bridge?
Hi Ann,
According to the single fare finder the default fare for Brockley to Hampton Court is avoiding zone 1 so you do not need to touch on any route validators. As for the other journey, because you are passing through Shoreditch High Street you will be charged via zone 1 anyway.
Hope that helps.
The cheapest way to travel from West Croydon to Elephant & Castle would be to change at Streatham or Tulse Hill. Yet when I enter this journey on nationalrail.co.uk it assumes I’d travel via Blackfriars, giving a more expensive fare.
There’s no mention of pink validators at either Streatham or Tulse Hill, so am I right in thinking if I did this journey changing at either of those two stations, I’d still be charged as if I’d changed at Blackfriars?
Hi Mark,
There are a number of issues with the way the National Rail site calculates Oyster fares. Fortunately it is not responsible for actually making the charges on your card. The TfL system gets it right on the single fare finder page. This uses the same calculation as the Oyster system itself.
I did an experimental journey from Honor Oak Park to Watford Junction via Highbury and Willesden on Sunday, to see how it compared to ploughing through town. Couldn’t see any pink validators at either H&I (cross-platform change) or Willesden (high level to low level), so full journey was a touch in at Honor Oak and a touch out at Watford. Charged £2.30. Where are the validators at those stations?!
Hi Phil,
Shhhhh! The system has charged you as though you went via Crystal Palace, Clapham Junction and Willesden Junction. The pink validators at H&I are near the exit ramps from the North London Line platforms where you go to change onto the Underground. I’m not sure where they are at Willesden Junction. I’m also not sure what it would charge you if you touched on either set as that route isn’t programmed into the system.
Is there a service that allows you to find the cheapest route around London when using Oyster?…
Honestly? Don’t bother. The system as a whole is so incredibly complex that it is not worth your time. The main question is usually if you take the bus (cheaper) or the tube (more expensive). For finding the means of transport on your personal routes …
Very helpful site! My query relates to travelling from Riddlesdown (Z6) to Stratford. I have been making this trip PAYG, via Canada Water and the pink validators. I have now purchased a Z2-6 monthly oyster travel card.
Do I still need to use the pink validator? Whilst what will happen if I decide to travel via London Bridge?
No, you don’t need to use the pink validators if you have a travelcard loaded on your Oyster. I’m not 100% sure what will happen if you go via London Bridge. When you touch out at the NR station it will deduct a zone 1 fare. When you touch back in at the LU station within 20 minutes it will continue the journey. When you touch out at Stratford it might effectively refund the earlier charge because it treats the whole journey as one. Where alternative routes are available for a PAYG journey, the cheapest one becomes the default where a travelcard is present on the Oyster. At least that is the experience of several people I know, including myself for one week in July. If you try it I’d be very interested to know the outcome.
I tried it today. I travelled from Z6 to London Bridge. At London Bridge I was deducted £1.50 (off-peak Z1 single). Once at Stratford it informed me of the same deduction. Checking the history confirmed that the first deduction had been zero’d out and the second deduction stood.
On the way back I went via Canada Water, avoided the pink validator and was charged nothing.
Thanks Adrian,
Can I just clarify then, the overall charge on arrival at Stratford after travelling via London Bridge was £1.50? That’s quite interesting if it is. I’m hesitating to ask what the deduction would be the other way via London Bridge as I don’t want to incur you extra charges.
Thanks for letting me know.
Apologies for the delay, the overall charge was £1.90. The return journey via London Bridge was also £1.90.
On a slightly different topic: my payg history never appears online, whilst for some reason the daily price caps don’t seem to work, I made a few journeys in Zone One this weekend and it took over £8 from me.
Thanks for letting us know. That’s very useful information indeed. On your other issues there sounds like a problem. If the journeys were starting and finishing in zone 1 then they should show on journey history. And as you have a travelcard for zones 2-6 your cap should have been £6.60. I’d contact the helpdesk and ask them to send you a statement (or request it online yourself – see the journey history page). You could also ask why it has overcharged you. My guess is that you either missed a touch out or touch in somehow which would result in a maximum fare being applied and that wouldn’t count towards the cap, or you fell foul of some OSI which joined two journeys together and caused you to exceed the maximum time allowed for a journey and would add two incomplete journey fares which again wouldn’t count towards the cap.
i am travelling from caledonian overground to essex changing at stratford .do i need to use the pink validator at stratford ?i dont seem to see one on platform 1 or 10 where are them all?would it be helpful not to look for one while you are in a hurry or even have to change platform ! I PAYG till stratford and then i have my train ticket to essex.Not sure what to do on the way back .swipe pink reader or yellow?will it be cheaper and save time to get a return paper ticket to stratford ?
Hi Paola,
I believe that the pink valiadtors are on the overground platform at Stratford. However, if you are changing between Oyster and paper tickets then you need to use the yellow readers to start or end your Oyster journey. You don’t say where in Essex you are going to, but I’ve checked a couple of places and in both cases it is cheaper to mix Oyster and paper tickets. You should only be charged £1.40 (peak) / £1.30 (off-peak) for the overground section each way, so as long as the return is more than £2.80 more expensive it is worthwhile.
Hope that helps.
I am travling for Hainault to Falconwood Rail Station. (Z4-Z4)
The Single fare is £2.30 (P) or £1.70 (OP). (Via Z1)But this takes me via zone one. This can take me via London Bridge or London Cannon Street.
The Alternative oyster single fares (AOSF)tells me £4.60 (P) or £3.50 (OP). So, now I am really confused! How can the AOSF be more that the first charge.
I will go via Z1 anyway! So, what is it?
Hi Luke,
The default fare is NOT via zone 1. Take the Central Line to Stratford, change onto the DLR to Lewisham then take NR to Falconwood. I would imagine that going via zone 1 will take longer in this case, as well as costing more. Alternatively, if you don’t want to take the DLR, change at Mile End onto the District Line then at Whitechapel onto the Overground and again at New Cross. Both routes utilise zones 2-4 which are the fares you quoted.
Hope that helps.
I am planning to make a journey from South Coulsdon to Stepney Green with a change from British Rail to Underground at Victoria. This involves travel through zones 1-6. Will I be charged twice? i.e How do I continue my through-journey at Victoria from overground to underground without already paying the oyster fare at that point? At London Bridge I presume you can continue the through-journey without punching out. Any suggestions or is it simply considered two journeys? i.e South Coulsdon to Victoria and then Victoria to Stepney Green.
Hi Shura,
At both London Bridge and Victoria you need to touch out from National Rail and touch back in to the Underground. These are what are known as Out of Station Interchanges. Providing you complete the two touches within the time allowed, the Oyster system will combine the two journeys into one. See the linked page for full details of the time allowed for each such interchange.
Thanks for the info. This is the most informative site I’ve seen on oyster. Brilliant! TFL is lame compared to this…None of this information is explained clearly at TFL whereas here its all layed out.
Hi Mike-
Thanks for the site, its great to get some independent information about the Oyster system, especially as I am always looking for new routes and fares.
Ok, quick question; I’m going to travel from Homerton to Camberwell, as you maybe aware, camberwell has no stations anymore since the 60′s (?) I think. So instead of 2 buses, and instead of travelling through Zone 1, I was going to go Overground to Stratford, DLR to Lewisham, NR Lewisham to Denmark Hill : this is clearly a bit annoying with changes and train waits, but it all takes place in Zones 2 and 3.
However, my problem is, will it recognise this journey if I use the RV at Stratford? If I use it there, will it charge me the Zone 1 approach to Denmark Hill? On the Single Fare Fainder it gives the Zone 2/3 option £1.50 fare, so, anyway, after writing all this, I’ll give it a go anyway and let you know…
My main problem is there is no RV at Lewisham for the interchange there.
Hi PineWomble,
There is only one fare for Homerton to Denmark Hill on the Single Fare Finder. You could reduce the cost slightly by making it two journeys, Homerton to Stratford and Stratford to Denmark Hill. To do that you would need to touch out and in again at Stratford. The Pink Validator will not help you. Also, there is no need for a pink validator at Lewisham because you need to touch out at the DLR and in again at the NR station. Your journey will be combined there unless you take longer than 20 minutes between touches because of the OSI.
Hope that helps.
Morning. Great site – so much more helpful than the TFL pages!
I’m having trouble with touching-out at Richmond. Oyster keep telling me I need to do it at a yellow validator, but there are only pink ones there. D’you happen to know if there are any yellow validators? Otherwise I’m going to have to leave and re-enter the station everytime I’m making my journey home (from Ravenscourt Park and out to Berkshire on SWT) which is just daft.
Any help gratefully received
Thanks
Caroline
Hi Caroline,
I’m pretty sure that there aren’t yellow validators at Richmond, just the gatelines and the pink route validators (which are only for use in the middle of an Oyster journey). I haven’t been there recently, so I can’t be 100% certain.
If you are using PAYG then you do need to touch out at the end of the Oyster journey. If your Oyster travel is on a travelcard season though, there is then no need to touch out if the whole journey (on Oyster) is within the zones covered. Also, have you considered moving the changeover point to Feltham? Depending on where you’re going to in Berkshire it may be possible to get off another train at Feltham and touch out there. If you sit in the right place on the train you may be able to nip out and back on the same train as there are exits on both platforms at Feltham. I’ve tested a couple of stations and the difference between the SWT fares to Feltham and Richmond is more than the difference between the Oyster fares from Feltham and Richmond to Ravenscourt Park.
Hello, I need to go from Uxbridge to Royal Oak every week. If I take the piccadilly to hammersmith and then the “hammersmith and city” to royal oak I have to pay z2-6, but how can I prove it? There are no pink validator in hammersmith I think…
Hi Simone,
There are two Hammersmith stations so you have to touch out from one and touch back in to the other. Providing you do this within the time allowed for the OSI it will treat both legs as one journey and know that you have gone that way.
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