Following much criticism, South West Trains has announced that they will allow pay-as-you-go Oyster cards to be used on their trains.

Commenting on the decision, London Assembly Member Richard Tracey said, “This is a long-overdue decision. South West Trains are the last rail company in London to sign up for the Oyster system, but finally they are on board."

Oyster machines are now being installed at all stations across the city, including on SWT routes. Soon, passengers will be able to use their pay-as-you-go Oyster cards on London’s entire rail and Tube network.

"It is ridiculous that Transport for London have had to expend so much time and effort in persuading SWT to accept Oyster. Rail operators in London need to work together to ensure passengers receive the best possible service.” added Tracey.

South West Trains had declined to be part of the integrated system claiming that the costs of maintaining the equipment necessary to sell and to read the Oyster cards were prohibitive and feared fare evasion would increase.

Commenting on SWT's decision, a TfL source told The Standard, "They have got too many other battles to fight at the moment and we think they decided that it was easier just to agree to go ahead with the Oyster roll-out so they could concentrate their energies elsewhere. It's great news for people travelling on those routes."

Commuters using Chiswick, Brentford and Putney mainline stations will be able to use their Oyster cards on South West Trains services in the autumn.

January 30, 2009