London's pay-as-you-go Tube Oyster ticketing system will be extended for use on the capital's rail network by 2009, it was announced today.
The cost of installing barriers and Oyster card readers has so far meant train operators have been reluctant to use the smart card technology.
But now Transport for London is reportedly paying ВЈ20m to install and upgrade equipment at train stations.
The Oyster smart card is currently used throughout the Tube network in London and stores a small amount of information about its user. When touched on a scanner, destination information is sent from the card reader to a central database.
Smart cards are in use around the world with many now including a credit payment system for retail use.
By staff writer
