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Public transport & cycling

Got a question about finding the best value way to travel in the UK? This board covers buses, coaches, trains, ferries, cycling and more.

Cheap Train Tickets from Stansted (and elsewhere)
I need to get back from Stansted on a Sunday in a few weeks, driving and parking was one option but parking was coming out quite expensive so looked at trains. I'm used to being able to get Advance train tickets if you buy sufficiently ahead of time but was surprised to see that there are none available for Stansted…
Problems with 60 plus oyster card
My card ran out in May but I had no correspondence from TFL about this in any form and they now tell me I have to apply for a new one at a cost of £20 . I have tried to do this but when they want my driver licence number I have five letters and numbers when they only want 3 and only let me put in 3, so I rang them again…
Travel Costs
I am on an enforced medical break from driving. I need to travel between Basingstoke and West Drayton to get to work. I stroll up to buy a ticket on my first day and was asked for the princely sum of £47.00. (Hardly encourages people out of their cars, does it?) The guy at the ticket counter stated that there was no…
50% off 1 year railcards on trainline
Available on some accounts as a pop up as soon as you login 50% off 1year railcards with trainline Does not work on 3 year cards Pop up should give you a unique code so watch out https://www.thetrainline.com/
Bus fare increases from 1 January 2025
First Bus website confirms the price increase from 1 January 2025. This also affects weekly, monthly and other ticket types. https://www.firstbus.co.uk/buy-tickets/ways-pay/fares Tap on tap off fares will be calculated by mileage, under 6 miles £2.40 and over 6 miles £3, one way and overall capped to the cost of a weekly…
Most cost effective way of travelling between zones 1-3 in london
Hi all, grateful for some advice please on the cheapest way to travel around London. I live in zone 3 and work in zone 1. I’m expected to go into the office between 2-3 days a week and I sometimes travel into zone 1 on other days. The daily cap for zone 1 to 3 travel is £10 (until March 2025, anyway, as I think current…
GWR Discounted Fares
moneysavingexpert.com/deals/great-western-railway/ Has anyone actually found a discount? I've been checking my usual travelled routes and found no difference, and a little more expensive than last time (before you say yes I am aware trains fare have gone up). Is this another London-centric only sale?
National Express
My son was booked on the 2.45 bus to Stansted Airport. The bus pulled in at around 2.50, but NE claimed it was actually the 1.45 bus running over an hour late, and refused to let him on. He could not wait over an hour longer as he would have missed the flight, so he shared a taxi with some other passengers to the airport.…
Railcards over 30?
Currently turning 30 in june next year boo. Since being a student ive always relied on rail cards currently got the 26-30 railcard but it seems there isnt one for over 30s. Anyone know of another system or discount system to mitigate the cost of rail as moving into 30s and above?
TFL bus routes not accepting Oyster
I've noticed some classic looking buses in Central London which don't accept Oyster, and the driver says its a £2 charge for the bus. These are on normal TFL bus routes, which I've travelled before at the £1.75 fare, on Oyster as usual, eg route 15 as the most recent example. I haven't gone far enough to check but I…
Trainline App missing Railcard
Bought 3 Year Senior Railcard from Trainline in June 2023, through MSE offer and it vanished from the Trainline App by December 23. 7 months since first comlaining, Trainline can still not make my Railcard available for use through the App and refuse any refund. Any one else with same problem? Any suggestion how to…
Online train seat reservation - anyway to get my money back?
Myself and two friends have bought 1st class interrail passes for a train based holiday next year. In order to use them on the Eurostar, you have to use an intermediary website to make a seat reservation. I used a website called Rail Europe that I was referred to by a reliable website for train information. During the…
No zip card yet
My 16 year old lives in Greater London and their zipcard is no longer valid - they are being slow and haven't applied for a new one yet. Will they be barred from using the bus? (I know that they shouldn't use the bus, but if they were reasonable they would already have a zipcard)
TfL contactless refund
I submitted two claims fir refunds via TfL’s contactless website before Xmas. I’ve had no response or acknowledgment. Given that their systems have been hacked and the contactless page was only restored a day or two before I made my claims, should I assume the claims didn’t go through and resubmit? Or do they not routinely…
Compensation for two canceled Northern trains and a more expensive TFW service.
OK I'm rather angry at the moment so excuse me if this comes off as ranty. Yesterday I bought a ticket to get me from Chester to Manchester Picadilly this morning, the ticket was £6.50. Northern canceled the train at short notice (notified via email at 1:47AM). The staff at the station checked for me and confirmed my…
Uber App Payment
As I am reluctant to furnish bank details to Uber, I would still like to use it. I have been told that they won't accept prepaid cards like Clubcard Pay+ or Revolut. I thought about using Uber gift card to furnish a balance but I cannot get an answer for their Customer Support. Does anyone know/use any method of prepayment…
Avanti train strikes
We have a visitor travelling from Paris to London on Eurostar and was hoping to get train London to Manchester. Unfortunately it is on the evening of 29th December and it is a strike day. Has anyone any suggestions how she can get up to Manchester (or nearby) on evening of 29th. Preferably a different train company. Thank…
Tube service delay refunds for contactless - journeys more than 28 days ago (when system was down)
Hi all, I have a few tube journeys made via contactless more than 28 days ago that are eligible for service delay refunds (the journeys were delayed by more than 15 minutes). There is a 28 day time limit for making such refund requests, however I've been unable to do so since the contactless system has been down for such a…
Cycle to Work Scheme gone wrong!
Hi all, Newbie here, so just going to get stuck in. Short version: 1 x halfords faulty bike 1 x disappeared bike 3 x letter of collection and no refund. Long version: My partner purchased a brand-new Electric Carrera Impel bike from Halfords Mile End store in Sept 2023 using the Cycle to Work Scheme. The bike cost £1099.…
How do Contactless users submit delay repay claims without TfL journey history on TfL website?
This is part question part rant because TfL website has been down for almost 2 months now so people using Contactless are unable to access their journey history to submit delay repay claims with train companies, apply for journey refunds etc. Has anyone had any luck with claiming without TfL journey history evidence or do…

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MSE News

Ofgem proposes new 'no standing charge' Price Cap – but Martin Lewis warns vulnerable customers need to be opted in or it won't work
Ofgem has today launched detailed proposals for a major shake up to its Energy Price Cap that dictates the price over 80% of homes in England, Scotland and Wales pay for their energy bills.
Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland to cut overdraft rates for millions but hike them for others – here's what's happening and full help
If you're a Lloyds, Halifax or Bank of Scotland current account holder, the interest rate you're charged for using your overdraft could change soon as part of a fees shake-up. The Lloyds Banking Group, which owns all three brands, says millions of its customers will pay less after the changes – but a "few" will pay more.
Warm Home Discount expansion confirmed with millions more eligible for the £150 top-up this winter – here's what we know
Around 2.7 million more low-income households, including 900,000 families with children, will become eligible for the £150 Warm Home Discount this winter, as the Government has confirmed it will remove the existing 'hard to heat' eligibility criteria. The extension has only been confirmed for winter 2025/26, with further changes possible for future years.
Martin Lewis: At last a chance to fix Council Tax flaws impacting millions – debt collection, difficulty challenging your band, discounts and more
Major flaws in the Council Tax system in England could finally be fixed in future, as the Government has launched a wide-ranging consultation to review hideous debt collection practices, the difficulty of challenging your band, the overly complex and horribly-named Severe Mental Impairment discount and more. MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis, who has long campaigned on these issues, shares his response and analysis.
Energy complaints to be dealt with more quickly and Energy Ombudsman to get new powers under Government plans
If you have a complaint about your energy firm, it may be resolved more quickly in future, as the Government has announced a raft of proposals to strengthen consumer protections in the energy market. The planned changes include giving the Energy Ombudsman new powers to force firms to comply with its decisions – but it's still very early days. Here's what we know so far.
Warm Home Discount expansion confirmed with millions more eligible for the £150 top-up this winter – here's what we know
Around 2.7 million more households, including 900,000 families with children, will become eligible for the £150 Warm Home Discount this winter, as the Government has confirmed it will remove the existing 'hard to heat' eligibility criteria. The extension has only been confirmed for winter 2025/26, with further changes possible for future years.
Base rate held at 4.25% – here's what it means and when it might be cut next
The Bank of England has held the base rate at 4.25%. Below we explain why, when it might be cut, plus what it means for your mortgage and savings.
Applied for South West Trains 'boundary fares' compensation? Act now to claim it
If you applied for compensation from South West Trains before the deadline in January 2025, you now need to provide your bank details to the claim administrator so it can be paid to you. Here's what you need to know.
Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated for millions – Martin Lewis explains how it'll work, what it means and if it's an improvement
All State Pensioners in England and Wales will receive a Winter Fuel Payment this winter, though those who earn over £35,000 will see it clawed back through the tax system. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. Here MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis shares his instant response and analysis, and we include answers to your key questions.

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Public transport & cycling

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