Below is an extract from London Underground's document Key Planning Developments and Assumptions: A supplement to the LU Strategic Plan and handbook for LU Business Planning, Version 6, March 2007.

It spells out in detail the company's plans to drive business away from ticket offices - plans which will undoubtedly be a precursor to renewed attacks on ticket office jobs.

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5.2.2 Ticketing plans

The following section sets out the plans and long term strategies for ticketing enabled by Prestige deliverables. However this is an indicative plan with each element subject to appraisal.

Short Term (2007 - 2008)

• Develop Smartcards:
  • Fastload functionality for all tickets and PAYG at gatelines via off-system sales.
  • Trial Oyster card chip integration to London-based card schemes along with ITSO compliancy.
  • Investigating removal of the £3 refundable deposit on Oyster cards to a one off charge.
  • A minimum top up on Pay As You Go Oyster cards at Ticket Offices to move customers onto higher top up, and to self-service machines which will still allow smaller amounts.
  • Working with Visit Britain to sell a new pre-loaded Visitor Oyster cards to tourists before they arrive in London and potentially at Visit Britain offices and hotels in London.
  • Partnering with Barclaycard to have an Oyster-enabled credit card with a dual purpose (travel and finance).
  • Trial of an Oyster Vending Machine in LU stations to dispense a blank Oyster card to be topped up by the customer.
• Upgrade of 350 Few Fare Machines (Advanced Fares Machine - AFM) to accept Oyster cards.
• Every station to have an accessible passenger operated machine (AFM).
• Implement New Station Accounting approach to remove back-office functions and increase customer-facing activity.
• Trial Oyster payment for car parking, dependant on a new Oyster retailing device being considered.
• Increased revenue control measures.
• Introduction of maximum fares with a £4 charge if customers do not touch in and out for their Pay As You Go journey.
• Ability to claim refunds off-system over the internet.
• Roll out of wide aisle gates in stations to replace existing manual gates where possible.
• Increase the number of foreign languages on ticket machines.
• Withdraw magnetic tickets from QBMs so they are Oyster only.
• Trial Oyster only Gates at selected stations.
• Improve performance regime for ticket selling assets so that they better suit the local station environment.

Medium Term (2007 - 2009)

• Smartcard Development
  • Trial Oyster card chip integration to mobile phones.
  • Partnering with Barclaycard to have an Oyster-enabled debit card with a dual purpose (travel and finance).
  • Partnering with Barclaycard to have an Oyster-enabled stored value card with a dual purpose (travel and finance).
• Mandatory migration of Annual season ticket holders to off-system sales outlets.
• Migration of monthly and longer period season tickets to off-system outlets.
• Investigate loans for season tickets, where a 3rd party financier will provide the finance and issue a yearly Oyster card for less money than 52 weekly or 12 monthly tickets.
• Trial alternative Ticket Office provision at low demand locations - enhance POM (ticket machine) device provision.
• Prioritise investment to off-system sales channels with supporting campaign for after sales services.
• Extend the number of off-system sales outlets beyond the LU environment.
• Provide non-LU ticket selling outlet within LU station environment e.g. Relay.
• Extend PAYG functionality to encompass full range of peak/off peak and ‘directional discounts’.
• Enhance the capacity limit and reliability protocols of ‘Reload’ link to gates.
• Enhance the ‘Reload’ link to gates to load ‘after sales’ services (customer charter, unresolved journeys etc).
• Re-align station staff training focus to ‘dynamically assist & support’ role.
• Trial portable smartcard device to realise customer facing staff activity role.
• Potential introduction of multi-lingual capacity to all sales methods.
• Introduction of SMS (text messaging services) that can be used to top up cards and investigate Oyster account.
• Enhancing Oyster capability for access and control systems.
• Improve gateline information, including readability of gate displays (from real-time display lights, glare on gate pods, descriptions etc).

Long Term (2012 - 2014)

• Organisational design changes in conjunction with new technology.
• Develop a ticket to compliment the Olympic Games.
• Smartcard Development:
  • Launch travel product and Pre-Pay load functionality to mobile devices e.g. mobile phones, PDAs.
  • Launch portable devices for all customer-facing staff activity.
• Develop Oyster loyalty schemes, including special edition Oyster cards etc.

Vision Realisation (2015 – 2017)

• Mandatory migration of all period travel products to Off-System sales.
• Fully automated sales of Pre Pay only at on-system devices.
• Fully integrate Off-System sales fulfilment and after-care services, with the potential for billing.
• Fully integrate information services to electronic information receiving points (at stations and to customer contact services e.g. mobile phones).