PAYG On Trains From Balham

Despite PAYG on mainline trains having the world's most flexible deadline (summer 2009? end of 2010? January 2010?), the ability to swipe that Oyster is starting to creep in. From tomorrow, you can pay as you go on Southern trains between Balham and Victoria - confusingly, this route covers Clapham Junction, where you can't use PAYG on South West Trains to Waterloo. More and more Oyster machines are being deposited in stations around the London suburbs, like black neoprene-clad rectangular ninjas awaiting the order to strike, so hopefully this is the first move of the endgame in this eternal battle between TfL and the train operating companies. (Image / tezzer57)