Pay as you go contactless goes live at 30 additional stations in South-East England with 20 stations to follow in Summer 2026

From 14 December 2025, customers across the South-East will be able to use pay as you go with contactless at 30 additional National Rail stations. This means that customers travelling on the day will no longer need to queue at ticket machines and instead can simply tap a contactless card or device to pay for their journey. 

From summer 2026, customers at additional 20 stations will be able to tap in and tap out. For pay as you go with contactless to work correctly, train company fares must be fully integrated with TfL’s fare system.  During rigorous testing, the system identified issues affecting journeys on Greater Anglia services. These issues meant customers would not get the experience they should, and the technology would not have worked as intended.  To make sure customers get the best possible experience, additional work is required. 

As a result, the introduction of pay as you go with contactless at the 20 Greater Anglia stations, including Stansted and Southend airports, announced last month, will now take place next summer. Customers will receive a full update ahead of the revised launch date to ensure they are informed and prepared for the benefits and convenience this technology will bring.   

The expansion of pay as you go with contactless makes it easier to switch seamlessly between different trains, the Tube, London Buses and trams, while ensuring customers pay the best adult fare for their journey on the day and time of their travel. Daily and Monday to Sunday capping when travelling into and within London will also apply to those using pay as you go with contactless.     

Jacqueline Starr, Executive Chair and CEO of Rail Deliver Group, said: “Expanding pay as you go technology to 30 stations is an important step towards making train travel easier and more convenient for customers. This move delivers greater simplicity, flexibility and choice for more people across the network. 

"The rail industry remains committed to working closely with government to develop a simpler, better-value fares system that not only meets customer expectations but also enhances the overall travel experience.” 

Martin Beable, Greater Anglia’s Managing Director, said: “We understand how frustrating it is when improvements like this are delayed, and I am very sorry for the disappointment this will cause some of our customers. It is essential, however, that contactless ticketing works reliably from day one. 

“Our teams are working closely with our partners to complete this work as quickly as possible, and we remain committed to introducing contactless ticketing across these additional stations by summer 2026.” 

Pay as you go technology has already been rolled out at 53 stations across the south-east, with 5.6 million journeys taken since June 2024, and more stations to follow next year.  It is part of a broader effort to modernise ticketing and adapt to evolving customer needs. Alongside contactless pay as you go, train operators are introducing personalised options such as Flexi Season tickets, single-leg pricing, and trialling simpler fare structures to make rail travel more accessible and better value.  

The rail industry is also working with Local Transport Authorities to deliver pay as you go across different modes of transport in both Greater Manchester and West Midlands.    

More information on the pay as you go with contactless expansion can be found here.