From: ce11son@yahoo.ca   
      
   On Sat, 30 Apr 2016 17:19:48 +0000 (UTC), John Levine    
   wrote:   
      
   >>I keep wondering what the systems are going to offer for those   
   >>of us who do NOT want any such "feature" & just want a card NOT   
   >>linked to anything.   
   >   
   >Somewhere in the SEPTA discussion it said that SEPTA will sell you a   
   >card you can reload with cash, for people who don't have or don't want   
   >to use other cards.  Even though TfL lets you use bank credit and   
   >debit cards, they have no plans to phase out Oyster, and for some   
   >applications (like senior discounts for us over 60's)   
   >   
   Actually free travel for 60+ residents in Greater London on TfL   
   services along with schoolchildren and some unemployed. Other railway   
   services often have a post-09.30 restriction Mon-Fri so that an   
   ordinary (chargeable) Oyster card (or a plain old ticket or   
   credit/debit card) has to be used earlier in those days. A   
   non-concessionary Oyster card can have some discounts pre-loaded.   
      
   >only an Oyster will work.   
   >   
   There are minor differences between the services available with the   
   two main versions of Oyster and credit/debit cards. Also, there is in   
   practice no "maximum fare"   
   [https://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/maximum-fares] on a 60+ card if   
   a touch-in/touch-out is missing; AIUI an operator gets their flat-rate   
   payment anyway as long as there is a record of one of the touches. On   
   two lines going into Kent there were until more recently no compatible   
   card readers so 60+ cards were shown at the barrier but ordinary   
   Oyster cards were invalid for travel past the GL boundary.   
      
   >I have to say that using my US AmEx card to touch in and out in the   
   >London Underground was pretty cool.  Each day I got one charge for   
   >whatever I'd used that day.   
      
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