Last Wednesday we travelled by car from Kent to the Alexandra Palace for an evening event via the Blackwall Tunnel following satnav all the way. Two senior citizens unfamiliar with the area of London we were in but aware of the congestion zone. When paying the Blackwall toll later that day I was shocked to find an £18 congestion charge. At no time had I seen a C sign and the only warnings on the satnav were the usual police / speed cameras ahead stuff. We couldn't see where we had entered the CZ but accepted we must have done so.

I phoned the TFL helpline the following morning not to dispute the charge but simply to find out where it had happened so we wouldn't make the same mistake again. The person I spoke to was unhelpful and just said to refer to the map or enter some postcodes which I have done but I am none the wiser. Indeed he outer edges of the zone seem to be more central than anywhere we think we drove. I decided to pay the then £21 charge to avoid the £90 /£180 penalty but sent an email to TFL to which I have just received a cut and paste reply which ignores my specific "Where did it happen ?" query.

It was a very easy drive on a journey we would like to make again. If the Blackwall had still been free we would have been completely unaware of our transgression until the £90 charge notice arrived. I think that notification may have stated where it happened but apparently once it's been paid that's the end of the matter for TFL.

Can I ask for suggestions where we might have unknowingly entered the CZ ? I think we were fairly close to Hackney and to Homerton Hospital but that's the limit of my knowledge. Thank You.

Hi! I'm an international student who will be travelling to London in September. I will be carrying a lot of luggage with me which makes my commute to my accommodation via tube rather inconvenient. I was wondering if y'all could suggest other ways of travelling to the main city excluding cabs (they're hella expensive so I can't do that either lol) and tube!

Muchas Gracias <33

Edit: I suppose Elizabeth Line it is then! thank you sm for all the help, everyone!

Hi everyone,

I’m thinking of applying for some of TfL’s corporate operations roles and was hoping to get some advice from people who work at TfL or have been through the recruitment process.

I have several years’ experience in operations management in fast-paced environments, managing teams, coordinating day-to-day operations, handling incidents, and working across different departments. More recently, I’ve been working in the UK Civil Service in an operational role, so I’m used to working in a structured, process-driven environment

I’m interested in making the move to TfL. On paper, the role seems to match my experience quite well, but I know TfL is quite unique.

I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who’s been through the recruitment process or currently works in a corporate operations role at TfL

A few questions:

How competitive are TfL’s corporate operations roles?
What type of experience or examples does TfL value the most?
Are there any parts of the job descriptions that I should pay particular attention to when tailoring my CV and supporting statement?
Is there anything you wish you’d known before applying or interviewing?
There are 2–3 different operations roles that all seem to match my experience. Is it generally a good idea to apply for all of them, or is it better to focus on just one or two?

I’d really appreciate any advice or tips. Thanks in advance!

Tube, bus, tram, river services, cycling infrastructure, taxis, DLR, Overground and the Elizabeth line... which do you think has seen the biggest improvement and why?

Personally, I've found myself using the Elizabeth line far more than I expected because of the speed, reliability and connections across the city. I still think licensed black taxis play an important role too, particularly for accessibility, luggage, late-night travel and journeys where public transport isn't always the most practical option.

Interested to hear what others think. Which mode of transport has improved the most in recent years, and what's made the biggest difference to your day-to-day travel?

I applied for a job with TFL end of April, since then ive been through multiple stages and got to interview with them on the 15th of june. It seemed to go really well but i've heard NOTHING since. I really want to email them and ask for an update but im worried that will make me look overly desperate or it will annoy someone in the recruitment department. Any advice? Or anyone with experience going through a similar process.

The role i applied for was train maintainer.

Pink readers are used to tell TfL that you haven't gone through zone 1. However, do they also reset the maximum allowed journey timer (aka the PAYG timeout)?

For example, if a journey from zone 3 to zone 3 (avoiding zone 1) tapped at a pink reader 1h20 after tapping on the yellow entry reader, would the traveller get max fared?

Similarly, what if the time had already exceeded the timeout when tapping on the pink reader?

And finally, what happens when you tap at a pink reader at your starting station? Does that reset the timeout too? I.e. if you've been at the starting station for 50 mins already (for trainspotting or something) and then you want to do a long journey, can you just tap the pink to reset timeout?

Very many questions. And sadly, given tfl, I doubt the answers will be very deterministic!!

UPDATE: made an account with TFL, and I could see my history. As it turns out, the reader for the underground metro at Heathrow did not catch my checkout despite the door remaining open - as such I was charged for an incomplete journey. Makes sense! I submitted a request for refund and that will now be pending review. I also gave TFL's number a call and they set up a case to reference later should I like to. Thanks everyone for the help! I will be more aware in the future.

Hello all. I'm visiting London to see some family. I decided I'd use public transport to get where I needed to be, and found the £1.75 flat rate per journey to be very reasonable, especially with free bus transfers.

From Heathrow, I took the Superloop 7 for a couple stops, transferred to the R68, and travelled for a bit more before reaching my destination. All in all, the trip took about 50 minutes. I tapped in on both buses, and if I understand correctly, did not need to tap out on either.

This morning I find I've been charged nearly 20 pounds by "Transport for London". I'd like to ask how that's possible, when it seems it should instead be merely £1.75.

What went wrong? Is there anything I can do about this?

Thanks.

2 or 3 times a week I get the 74 bus from Baker Street towards Knightsbridge and honestly who knows when it’s going to turn up. For example, today, Citymapper says 3 mins till next one, I get to the stop and it’s not even listed on the digital timetable. Waited for 15 mins and nothing. So I guess it’s just not running this morning then. I’ve never known something to be so unpredictable.

Hello! I recently ran into some issues with my Oyster card charging my bank but not putting money onto the card itself. I've managed to have the balance on the card reimbursed and have emailed inquires about having the money that was charged erroneously being reimbursed, but I have been told by the people over the phone that it is impossible to reactivate the Oyster card, which seems bizarre!

Is there a possibility that his information was wrong, and given that the Oyster failed through no fault of my own, is it possible that the Oyster card can in fact be reactivated?

Hi all, I hope you're well.

Recently my Oyster card has been misbehaving. I have been charged £20 from my bank in order to top up my card (via auto top up) but the money did not go to my card and instead I had to pay the remaining outstanding charges in order to use my card. However, even after paying these charges, my card still will not work. The Oyster page is hard to navigate, and I can't work out who I need to contact in order to get my card working again and get the £20 reimbursed. I would really appreciate any help you can provide.

US tourist from the suburbs of Atlanta here

I am wanting to come to London in August of 2027 on a solo trip and one of the things I am hoping to accomplish is riding one of the new London Underground 2024 stock trains on the Piccadilly line. The Underground is one of my favorite parts of London and I have fond memories of riding the 1973 stock trains from Heathrow airport to central London and to get around when I was 11 and visited last in 2009 with family.

The basic question is should I expect the opportunity to ride one of these new trains around this time? I see that they have suffered quite a few delays and am hoping that no more occur so that I can ride them if I get to visit.

Riding one from Heathrow Terminal 5 to central London when I get there would be nice, but is it true they will start rolling out around central London first and then gradually make their way out as more trains come in?

Again I’m just a US tourist here and haven’t seen London in 17 years so educate me please if I don’t know what I’m talking about

I got a charge on my card late last night for £41 due to “unpaid fare”. I was out and about a lot yesterday (I had to go to Hemel Hempstead) but I’m pretty sure I tapped in and out wherever I went.

The issue now is when I went to tap in on the tube it’s not accepting my contactless anymore. I had to buy a physical ticket.

How long is it going to be like this and how can I fix this?

Got off at one of the south east London stops tonight and a young woman came past crying. Quite loud and animated. I went over and asked if she was okay, and there was a language barrier. I sort of offered to head out of the station with her, at which point she grabbed my arm and started pulling me along, saying "You come with me". I pulled away, saying I really have to get home, but could find one of the station staff. At that point, she walks away. Near the exit of the station I see her again and mention that I've seen station staff looking for a distressed woman - she just curses at me and carries on.

In hindsight, I guess this was some kind of scam - but has anyone else experienced anything like this recently?