Smart Card Data Systems
Having reviewed the planning guidelines and data systems used for bus network
planning in London, I turn now to a potential new source of travel information, Oyster smart
card data. Every time an Oyster card is used to pay a transit fare, the smart card system
records the time, location and other information about the transaction. This recording occurs
when the cardholder taps their card on a reader as they go through a ticket gate or board a bus.
In the case of London, ticket gates are located at the entry and exit to Underground stations so
information about where and when the cardholder entered and exited the Underground is
captured. For buses, the card records information about the time of boarding and the bus route
number that has been associated with the reader on that bus.