Overview
- From 14 December, Stansted and Southend Airport stations will accept tap-in tap-out, completing contactless coverage at every London airport.
- The upgrade brings pay-as-you-go contactless to 50 south-east stations through government funding backed by Transport for London.
- Passengers will be able to use bank cards or contactless devices instead of paper tickets, with stations such as Chelmsford, Luton, Stevenage and Dorking included.
- At Stansted, the change removes a setup that had led to frequent fines for contactless users, though Oyster cards remain invalid at the airport and contactless will not apply between Cambridge and Stansted.
- The expansion builds on earlier rollouts at 53 stations that recorded 5.6 million journeys since June 2024, alongside digital ticketing trials surpassing 4,000 trips since September.