How do I buy a bus ticket in London?
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How do I buy a bus ticket in London?On the http://journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk it says:
FYI its Bus 148Pay before you board
So I assume I need to buy a ticket before I get on a bus?
Where exactly can I buy one?
Halp! -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?There are two options.
1) Buy an oyster card and put money on it. Swipe it whenever you get on and off the bus.
2) Give the driver £2 when you get on, and you'll be given a ticket.
Both options require no interaction with the driver whatsoever, which feels strange, but people give you weird looks if you try to speak to them. London has different social rules to everywhere else... -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Just use an Oyster Card because it works out to be cheaper in the long run
Plus it's rather convenient to use without having to carry loose change around with you and worrying about not having the correct change.Last edited by IcEmAn911; 23-09-2011 at 22:28. -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Jump on the exit!
or you could pay the ridiculous 2.20 fare when you get on the bus. But I recommend getting a travel card if you don't live in London. If you are although I doubt you will be cause otherwise you probably wouldn't be asking this....get an oystercard! -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?It's £2.20 nowadays(Original post by Jenny_C)
There are two options.
1) Buy an oyster card and put money on it. Swipe it whenever you get on and off the bus.
2) Give the driver £2 when you get on, and you'll be given a ticket.
Both options require no interaction with the driver whatsoever, which feels strange, but people give you weird looks if you try to speak to them. London has different social rules to everywhere else... -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Can't believe this thread had come up. I had this EXACT same problem a couple weeks ago. I went into London and I was told you have to buy the ticket before you got on the bus. The bus stop I was standing at didn't have a ticket machine so I wondered how you got this.(Original post by dmae)
On the http://journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk it says:
FYI its Bus 148
So I assume I need to buy a ticket before I get on a bus?
Where exactly can I buy one?
Halp!
To cut a long story short I bought my ticket from a different stop from the one I was boarding at. I got on the 148 and got fined for buying a ticket from the wrong stop. Obviously I appealed and got my money back. Just don't make the same mistake i was well embarrassed on the bus trying to explain where I got on I didn't have a clue!
Buy your ticket from the stop your boarding at!! -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?As I live in the suburbs, I always have an All Zones Travelcard so I just use that for buses in London. Otherwise, I always buy the ticket from the bus driver when I get on the bus for my local TFL buses. I'm not at home long enough due to Uni to bother buying an Oyster card.
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Hey random question for you. Are you talking about daily travel passes or something else?(Original post by DotComBoom)
As I live in the suburbs, I always have an All Zones Travelcard so I just use that for buses in London. Otherwise, I always buy the ticket from the bus driver when I get on the bus for my local TFL buses. I'm not at home long enough due to Uni to bother buying an Oyster card.
I'm spending five days in London around Christmas and I'm probably staying in Zone 2-4. But will want to do some things in central London like Natural History Museum, Zoo, Camden market etc.
The whole transport network is overwhelming. I was told you could buy a day pass for certain zones you're travelling in, how does that work and where do you buy them from? -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Yeah, I'm talking about a daily pass. When you arrive, go to the nearest station and ask the person in the ticket for a week long Zone 1-4 Travelcard. That would probably be the easiest, plus you'd only need to once deal with a ticket office. That will cover you're Overground, Underground and Bus travel in those zones.(Original post by joey11223)
Hey random question for you. Are you talking about daily travel passes or something else?
I'm spending five days in London around Christmas and I'm probably staying in Zone 2-4. But will want to do some things in central London like Natural History Museum, Zoo, Camden market etc.
The whole transport network is overwhelming. I was told you could buy a day pass for certain zones you're travelling in, how does that work and where do you buy them from? -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Oyster pre-pay is the best option if you'll be making (reasonably) regular journeys.
http://visitorshop.tfl.gov.uk/oyster...ster-card.html
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/14482.aspx
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/14312.aspx
And if your first journey of the day is after 9:30 it will not cost you more than the price of a daily travel card as it is capped. So don't be a Twirly* and you'll save many
A joke that did the rounds about free off-peak travel for pensioners is when they frequently asked the driver "Am I too early?" and they got nicknamed Twirlies
Last edited by viffer; 23-09-2011 at 22:37. -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?I'm not sure it'll be worth a weeks one unless there's enough saving compared to buying it each day..(Original post by DotComBoom)
Yeah, I'm talking about a daily pass. When you arrive, go to the nearest station and ask the person in the ticket for a week long Zone 1-4 Travelcard. That would probably be the easiest, plus you'd only need to once deal with a ticket office. That will cover you're Overground, Underground and Bus travel in those zones.
I'm going Monday to Friday. So basically 5 days worth of a pass.
Also..sorry to ask more and hijack the thread a bit but do you have any idea how much a zone 1-4 pass would cost me? A ball park figure would do..and is it effected by off and on peak times? (say before 9am is on-peak and 5-6:30pm or something?) -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?I think, dont quote me on this though, that off peak begins to kick in after 9:30. Sometimes a weeks worth is cheaper, but otherwise yeah it'd probably be more wise buying a daily one. A rough ball park figure, off peak is around £8 for those zones, peak would be slightly more expensive.(Original post by joey11223)
I'm not sure it'll be worth a weeks one unless there's enough saving compared to buying it each day..
I'm going Monday to Friday. So basically 5 days worth of a pass.
Also..sorry to ask more and hijack the thread a bit but do you have any idea how much a zone 1-4 pass would cost me? A ball park figure would do..and is it effected by off and on peak times? (say before 9am is on-peak and 5-6:30pm or something?)
I'd suggest you probably just buy a daily travelcard at around 10AM everyday and you'll be fine. -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?If it's a pay-before-you-board bus, there'll be a ticket machine at the bus stop. Stick your money in and it prints out a ticket which you then show to the driver. But like everyone has said, get an Oyster card.
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Okies thanks a lot. Hopefully it doesn't take too long to get to places like the zoo and museum from where we might stay then, Palmers green. Reviews seem to suggest a service goes from Palmers green station to Kings Cross and that's 20 mins. King cross to the zoo looks to be around 30 mins or so on foot, or faster by tube/bus.(Original post by DotComBoom)
I think, dont quote me on this though, that off peak begins to kick in after 9:30. Sometimes a weeks worth is cheaper, but otherwise yeah it'd probably be more wise buying a daily one. A rough ball park figure, off peak is around £8 for those zones, peak would be slightly more expensive.
I'd suggest you probably just buy a daily travelcard at around 10AM everyday and you'll be fine.Last edited by joey11223; 23-09-2011 at 22:36. -
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Re: How do I buy a bus ticket in London?Gt Portland Street (Met/Ham&City/Circle) or Regents Park (Bakerloo) for the Zoo.(Original post by joey11223)
Okies thanks a lot. Hopefully it doesn't take too long to get to places like the zoo and museum from where we might stay then, Palmers green. Reviews seem to suggest a service goes from Palmers green station to Kings Cross and that's 20 mins. King cross to the zoo looks to be around 30 mins or so on foot, or faster by tube/bus.
They're on different lines so it'll depend where you're travelling from before going there which stop will be the most convenient. Regents Park is the nearest but not by a huge amount
