Transport for London Publishes Most Common Station-to-Station Tube, Overground, DLR, and Elizabeth Line Journeys for 2024

Transport for London (TfL) reveals from a Freedom of Information request the most common journeys for the London Underground (LU) for the year 2024.

This is a follow-up to my previous articles from last year, where I listed the most common station-to-station journeys for National Rail, the Elizabeth Line, London Overground, the Underground, and Docklands Light Railway (DLR) for 2023.

The table lists the most frequent journeys on the Transport for London network in 2024, showing the origin station, destination station, and number of trips. The busiest route is between Bank and Waterloo LU, with over 1.2 million trips. Other popular routes include Liverpool Street to Tottenham Court Road, Oxford Circus to Victoria LU, and Canary Wharf to London Bridge LU, each with over 900,000 trips. Some routes, like London Bridge NR to Not Applicable, also see significant traffic. I’m not sure why TfL has listed 'Not Applicable' as a station in the spreadsheet, but I assume it could indicate a missing touch by a passenger when using their Oyster or contactless bank card to travel from their origin or destination station. The list features key lines across the Tube, Overground, DLR, and Elizabeth Line.

The top 20 most common journeys are as follows:

Interesting FOI Requests to Transport for London – Bus Lane Enforcement on Christmas Day, Update on Central Line Improvement Programme, Piccadilly Line, and More

I will be reviewing various Freedom of Information (FOI) requests that have been responded to and published by Transport for London (TfL), particularly in relation to the current situation involving the Central Line Improvement Programme (CLIP) and the new 2024 Tube Stock for the London Underground Piccadilly Line.

Actual off-peak Oyster times
Request ID: FOI-3161-2425
Date published: 14 January 2025

Examining Transport for London’s Customer Complaints: Key Insights from 2023 and 2024

Transport for London (TfL) plays a crucial role in the daily commuting of millions of passengers across the capital, handling over 3.56 billion passenger journeys in 2023/24. With such a high volume of services, customer complaints are inevitable. However, TfL remains committed to listening to passenger concerns, addressing issues promptly, and implementing improvements to enhance the quality of service.

In line with its transparency commitments, TfL has published detailed data on customer complaints through a Freedom of Information request (FOI-2798-2425). This data not only outlines the total complaints received each month but also highlights the key areas of dissatisfaction, providing valuable insights into recurring issues across various categories. Below is a more detailed look at the most complained-about issues from January 2023 to December 2024.

A Response to Daniel Timms’ Proposal on Scrapping Tube Fare Zones

In response to Daniel Timms' suggestion to scrap London's Tube fare zones and introduce distance-based fares in kilometres, there are several key points to consider that highlight the potential confusion and difficulties for various groups of passengers. He published his suggestion on The Londoner website, which can be found here. While the idea of distance-based pricing may seem appealing at first glance, it overlooks the significant impact this could have on passengers who rely on the current fare system, particularly those using Oyster Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) and contactless payment methods.

Why Distance-Based Fares Could Cause Confusion

TfL Accepts 5-10 and 11-15 Zip Oyster Photocards Until 31 December 2024 Amid Cyber Security Incident

Zip Oyster Card - TfL

Transport for London (TfL) has announced that children with expired 5-10 or 11-15 Zip Oyster photocards can continue to use their cards until 31 December 2024. This measure comes as TfL deals with a cyber security incident that has prompted an extensive investigation into the potential access of customer data.

TfL Reveals an Update on Integrating Oyster Smartcards on Digital Wallets (Apple and Google Wallets)

As various transport systems around the world have integrated their smartcards to digital wallets such as Apple and Google Wallet/Pay. A Freedom of Information request to Transport for London (TfL) has revealed an update on integrating their Oyster smartcards to digital wallets.

I refer to my previous article where the Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan pledged in his 2024 election manifesto to bring concession Oyster cards to digital wallets.

Transport for London Reveals The Top 10 Oldest Oyster Cards Still In Use, As Of Mid-2024

Cover of the Oyster card guide booklet from 2003

A Freedom of Information request to Transport for London (TfL) has revealed the top 10 Oyster cards that were first enabled are still in use.

Request ID: FOI-1011-2425
Date published: 15 July 2024

Question:

A prominent user on X (formerly Twitter) named 'CLondoner92' has posted a link to your FOI request about the oldest Oyster card still in use.

The One Day Travelcard Is Saved!

I know this news is slightly overdue, but I would like to specifically mention on my website that the One Day Travelcard is saved as Transport for London (TfL) and the Rail Delivery Group, which represents the train operating companies, agreed to retain the One Day Travelcard.

Rail Delivery Group:

Rail Delivery Group, Department for Transport and Transport for London reach agreement to save Day Travelcards for train passengers

Train companies, represented by Rail Delivery Group (RDG) and Transport for London (TfL) have reached an agreement which means Day Travelcards can continue to be bought by customers as part of their train tickets to London.  

I Believe TfL Should Reform The Travelcard Agreement To Offer Smart Flexible Ticketing Options

This article is a follow-up to my previous article from April 2022 about Transport for London’s (TfL) proposal to withdraw from the Travelcard Agreement.

I've been reading the draft TfL Business Plan 2023 (for the Wednesday 7th December 2022 Board meeting) and they are still considering withdrawing from the Travelcard Agreement as part of meeting the conditions of the funding agreement with the Government.

TfL adds Pay As You Go fares to Journey Planner and Open Data feed

TfL have added prices to their Journey Planner to show commuters how much it would cost to travel on ‘Pay As You Go’ Oyster and contactless fares.

From TfL press release

Customers using TfL's Journey Planner can now see how much a planned journey on public transport in London will cost, following recent upgrades to help make planning journeys easier for customers.

TfL to remove cash fares for Croydon Tramlink

TfL has announced that cash fares will be removed on Tramlink which will bring them in line with London Buses.

From TfL press release

18 year old ticket machines across Tram network to be removed on 16 July 2018

TfL fares will apply to new Crossrail Elizabeth Line service

TfL has announced that the Elizabeth Line pay as you go fares will be the same as on existing TfL services.

From TfL Press release

TfL confirms that Elizabeth line pay as you go fares in central London will be the same as the equivalent Tube fare - saving money for millions of Londoners.

Unlimited Hopper fare launches for London Buses

TfL and the London Mayor announce the launch of the unlimited hopper fare for London Buses.

From TfL Press release

This press release, issued by the Mayor of London, was first published on london.gov.uk

Over 140 million 'Hopper' journeys already made since it launched in September 2016

Around 13,000 additional passengers to now benefit from the unlimited 'Hopper' every day.

Unlimited 1 hour bus hopper fare launches soon for London Buses!

The Mayor of London has announced that the unlimited one-hour Hopper Fare is coming to London Buses by the end of January.

From Greater London Authority

•Mayor confirms new unlimited one-hour Hopper fare will be live by the end of January, with weekly capping on Oyster introduced during the year

•Fares on TfL services frozen until 2020 - encouraging millions more journeys by public transport in London

•Mayor hits out at another year of eye-watering fare hikes by poor performing private rail companies

TfL confirms second year of fares freeze as their new business plan sees record investment in transport

In the latest press release, TfL has published their upcoming investment plans and the second year of fare freeze.

From TfL press release

TfL has today published its updated Business Plan, which covers the period from 2017/18 to 2022/23.

The plan confirms how, over the next five years, TfL will deliver the Mayor's Transport Strategy and make London a fairer, greener, healthier and more prosperous city.

TfL launches app to enable passengers to top up their Oyster ‘on the go’

TfL has released their own mobile phone app to enable passengers to top up their Oyster card ‘on the go’.

From TfL press release

Oyster card users can now check their pay as you go balance and top up their card with just a few quick taps of their smartphone after Transport for London (TfL) today launched its new app.

The new app, which was designed by TfL and developed by Cubic Transportation Systems, is free to download via the Apple App Store and Google Play Store and enables customers to use their smartphone to quickly add pay as you go credit or Travelcards to their Oyster card. These can then be added after 30 minutes by simply touching the Oyster card on the yellow card reader at any Tube or rail station, tram stop or River Bus pier as part of a journey.

Consultation to abolish cash fares for Croydon Tramlink

TfL has opened up a consultation to abolish cash fares for the Croydon Tramlink network.

From TfL press release

Transport for London (TfL) has begun an eight-week public consultation on plans to make trams in London 'cashless'.

The proposal would see existing cash ticket machines, which only sell a small number of the more expensive paper tickets every week and do not allow customers to top-up their Oyster card, removed from the Tram network.

Oyster card system upgrade, new TfL app and July London Bus tender awards

I have several news stories today so let’s start off with the news that the Oyster card is set to be upgraded, enabling unlimited 1 hour fare which means you pay once and get unlimited transfers for the one-hour hopper fare. Also, TfL is launching a new phone app where passengers can top up their Oyster card on the go.

From TfL press release

One billion journeys made by ‘Contactless’ on London Transport system

TfL has announced that one billion journeys have been made by using contactless payment cards.

From TfL press release

London's transport network has now seen more than one billion pay as you go journeys made by contactless payment cards - as the new payment option has substantially changed the way customers pay for their travel around the city.

Update on the 2017 TFL Fares

First of all, Happy New Year everyone!

I’ve found a recent press release from TFL containing a recap for you on the fare changes for London Transport services.

From TFL Press release

• Recent introduction of the Hopper fare, as well as the Mayor's pay as you go fares freeze on TfL services, mean Londoners will benefit even more in the coming years
• Fares not in TfL's control, including Travelcards, daily and weekly caps, and pay as you go fares on suburban rail services, to increase from 2 January 2017
• TfL urging customers to check they are using the right travel product to ensure they don't spend more than necessary to get around the city
• Transport for London (TfL) is urging all customers to check they are using the right travel product to ensure they do not spend more than necessary to get around the city, ahead of the annual fares revision on 2 January 2017.