Children free on Underground - ticket barriers?

Ickle_Steve

Were planning to take the tube into London soon to show the kids the sights.
I believe children under 5 travel free at weekends. If this is correct do they still get a ticket?
If they don't, how do we get through the ticket barriers on the central London stations? Carry them or ask staff perhaps?
Any advice on this would be much appreciated.

paulherts

Every ticket barrier you encounter will have a gate (for pushchairs) which will be staffed. Show them your ticket and they will let you through.

I believe kids under 5 travel free at all times.

Ickle_Steve

Thanks Paul.

Kimberley

You have to buy a family travel card for you and your partner, when you do all the kids under 12 get a ticklet which is free, but yes kids still need a ticket. They must travel at all times with the adults though.

Kimberley

Forgot to say when you go to the ticket office, just say two adults and the number of children and make sure you ask for a family travel card.

Ickle_Steve

Thanks Kim & Peter.

Sounds easier than I thought as long as West Ruislip is staffed at weekends. I'm sure it is.

Baz-Bee

Under 5's travel free on the tube and DLR and under 11's travel free on the buses.

For all the info you need the TfL Fares and Ticket guide contains everything from ticket prices, to how the different tickets work, to who travels free etc.

It can be viewed on line as a pdf file here:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/fares-tickets/2005/downloads/tfl-fares-2005.pdf

See Page 30 for info on Family Travelcards and Page 52 for info on children and fares.

London Transport Customer Services has just won a national award for their service, so if you have any queries about who pays what and when why not give them a call?

evesham1988la

peterbaker wrote:

Even though I have bought heaps of them over the years, I am still not entirely sure how Family Travelcards are calculated. They are definitely great value but although under 5's may go free (I don't know), other kids seem to pay a small charge of 80p each for Zones 1 and 2 according to what's printed on their tickets(my two kids are nine and eleven) whilst I as the adult get a much discounted ticket at £3.10 I think (for Zones 1 and 2).

I suppose that's another way of saying two kids go free when with one parent, (because the normal Travelcard price is £4.70 for Zones 1 and 2 I think), but actually it's better than that because I believe two adults travelling with one child would only pay 2x£3.10 + £0.80 which is a £2.70 saving on the price of two normla adult Tickets. I don't think you can easily get Family Travelcards from a machine (if at all) - you have to go as a family to the ticket counter. The tickets themselves are marked with a stripe I think so that eagle-eyed inspectors can spot any adult who might be using one without a kid in tow:-)

I don't know about the stripe but if you put a child ticket through the gates if flashes up with "CHILD".

You can get Family TravelCards quite easily from the Ticket Machines if the station/ticket office is unstaffed - its quite self-explanatory.

Ickle_Steve

Took the family on Saturday. Piece of cake. I'd recommend the Family Travel Card to anyone taking children. The staff never even looked at the tickets at the barrier gates.
Thanks for all the suggestions :T